Exposed
by The 21st Century Pendragon
Summary: Lincoln, Ronnie Anne and Lori (and many others) get involved the biggest scandal of the year in their school. Inspired from a true story.
1. Chapter 1, Part 1: Blistery Beginning

**Fall came and fall went.**

That November morning, a Monday, Mr. Lynn Loud Jr. and Mrs. Rita Loud Jr. are sent to the principal's office for an urgent meeting, requested by Principal Huggins himself. The parents, all with valid concern in their minds, are cautious as to why they are summoned to the school all of a sudden. Their visits to that forbidden room would always denote that one of their children (or more than one) caused trouble in the school.

"Mr. and Mrs. Loud, glad you both accepted my invitation. Come right in." Principal Huggins welcomes them inside his office. "Have a seat, both of you."

Both of them look at each other caution, given that the principal's greeting is mixed with contempt.

As they take their seats, Mrs. Lynn raises the elephant in the room, "Seems abrupt that you requested us to come to school at this time. Is there something wrong…with one of our children?"

"Glad you bring that up Mrs. Loud. It will take more than one polite gesture to tolerate your family's name in this respected institution."

Mr. Loud finds the principal's words complicating, signifying that the principal has something crucial to share, and only sugarcoating it with his pride. He responds, "What are you talking about, Principal Huggins? Is this about our children?"

Principal Huggins then picks up three folders from his file cabinet and throws it in front of the Loud parents. Rita takes the folders and opens it to see information records of three burly but thuggish-looking high school boys. One is named Felix, a boy of Hispanic descent with tattoos and a shaved head. Another is named Henry, a boy of Chinese descent with a hairstyle and looks of a K-Pop star. And the final is named Ralph, an African-American boy with a clean-shaved head. Each of their photo seems to resemble mug shots. The parents are confused as to why the principal had shown the information of these boys since they never are never familiar of them.

"Uhmm Principal Huggins, what is this about?" Rita expresses her concern.

"Who are these boys?" Lynn Sr. shares the same unease.

The principal goes back to his chair to report the primary concern. "Last Friday, a group of seniors held a party near the college fraternity district in Royal Woods. It was one of those days when high schoolers go wild with their partying."

Rita is held with concern as a lot of assumptions run in her head.

"What does this had to do with our children?" Lynn Sr. asks.

"As reported by one of our trusted sources in Royal Woods High, your daughter Lori was invited as she is a high school senior."

"Yes, we allowed her. She is about to enter college. She is a good enough independent woman," Rita defends.

"But that's not all. It seems she was in the premises when it was reported that your son, along with four other girls who were his close friends, were in a room privately with those three seniors."

That revelation comes like a lightning crash to the parent's ears. Their dire concern is exasperated when they glance on the profiles of the three seniors.

Principal Huggins then shares, "Those three boys, they are troublemakers. They have a history of vandalism, truancy, reckless behavior, any offense imaginable done by high schoolers. They are notorious in their school. And they were flirting with four other girls, with your son in place and your daughter neglecting her own brother."

The added information adds more salt to the wound as the concern grows within them.

* * *

**Fall is frozen up there.**

Three days before that morning, Lori is scrambling through her closet, retrieving some party dresses and throwing them to her bed. She goes from dress to dress, hue to hue to nail the perfect outfit which she thinks will make a good impression to her camaraderie. The senior's autumn party, organized the local University of Michigan college community, is tonight, and Lori wants to make the best impression to those she might meet there.

"So, I saw these new batches online. They cut the prices for this great sale. They have even those autumn-themed dresses. I love the way they mix the brown colors and the yellows colors to make it look like they autumn leaves," Leni shares to her big sister as she is lying down on her bed.

But Lori shares to her, "Leni, maybe not too much fad. I just need to stand out and look normal. Like not trying too hard. You know, these guys are a big mix. The artsy ones, the political ones, the ones who are legitimate business people. And there are the other ones."

"Who are the other ones?" Leni asks. She then gasps, probably figuring out what Lori is talking about. "You mean there are a lot of boys named Juan?"

"No Leni." Lori then picks up her thick coat and her scarf to head outside. "I'll head out to the store and fetch Bobby."

Before she leaves, Leni pleads to her sister since she wants to come to the party. "Lori, please! Why couldn't I?"

"Leni, it's for seniors. You'll get yours next year," Lori remarks.

But Leni simply cannot take the rejection.

"I'll fetch Bobby in the terminal." With that, Lori leaves a pouting and nearly tearing Leni.

But before she leaves, she fetches Lincoln at his room. "Lincoln, let's go."

"Cool," he simply replies, getting off his bed.

The two hop in Vanzilla and drive to fetch Bobby.

Lincoln is aware that Lori is going to her senior party, but he is not informed why he is told to hop along with Lori. As they drive to the turnpike, he asks, "Uhmm Lori, I am glad that you gave me a hundred bucks to buy the latest Ace Savvy console. But why you need me tonight? The boys and I have plan tonight."

"I need you to do a good favor," Lori implies, "And that hundred bucks is not for your Ace Savvy stuff. I just told you just to take it."

"Why? What is it for?"

"You'll see."

Lincoln just feels disenfranchised that Lori did not elaborate everything, realizing that Lincoln might be disappointed at the bargain.

Thirty minutes later, they arrive at the bus terminal, where Bobby is waiting for them. Lori gets down from the van and greets her boyfriend. He kisses her in return.

"So boo-boo bear, are you set for tonight?" Lori asks.

"Kind of nervous. But anything goes," Bobby answers with a chuckle.

"Where are they?"

"They just went in the bathroom."

Just in time, Lincoln spots Ronnie Anne Santiago and Sid Chang step out of the bathroom and walk to them. He then wonders what the two girls are doing with Bobby.

The four of them head to the van.

"Hey Ronnie Anne!" Lincoln greets.

But Ronnie Anne is less than enthusiastic, "Hey Lincoln. Don't ask more."

"What's going on with her?" Lincoln asks Sid. "How come you hop along?"

"Uhhhhhh…long story," Sid answers simply.

Bobby then faces to Lincoln, "Hey bro, glad you agreed."

"Agreed?"

"Lincoln, you have to watch the girls," Lori elaborates.

"WHAT?!"


	2. Chapter 1, Part 2: Blistery Beginning

**Fall has reached its peak.**

That Monday afternoon, after school, the news of the biggest scandal of the school had already spread in every hall, every classroom and every student in Royal Woods High. The rumors also started to spread in the middle school and the elementary levels. Fortunately, the only awareness that was heard by the majority is that "three seniors with notorious school records have been hanging out with four young schoolgirls and flirting with them, and one boy classmate of the schoolgirls enables it". But the threat is that the high school paper journalists are doing a thorough investigation of the scandal. And two witnesses come forward with few yet credible information about the elementary kids involved. So, it was assumed that Lincoln was involved since he is the only student in Royal Woods Elementary who is "a white kid with white hair". And Principal Wilbur Higgins is able to deduce Lincoln's identity, but he

Because of that, Lori receives the first sense of the rumor spreading, even prior to Monday. So, she bursts her concern out to Lincoln in his room after the "scandal" becomes the talk of the town.

"If only you and Ronnie Anne and Sid and the other girls weren't too stubborn to stick your butts in a safe place, like…I don't know…somewhere other than where those thugs are, I would be fine. BUT YOU DID! I TOLD YOU TO TAKE CARE OF THE GIRLS. AND YOU DIDN'T. I can't believe I have to talk about a scandal to you. And now the word 'scandal' in your name right now. Well, maybe they don't know you yet. But sooner, people will know. Kids will know. EVERYONE WILL KNOW ABOUT THIS! AND YOU JUST HAVE TO…"

Lincoln just sits frozen as Lori vents in front of him. He knows for sure that he has done one of the most regrettable things of his life. But for the moment, he lets his sister release her aggravation before he can even defend himself.

Their sisters are listening behind the door.

"Seems Lori is not that happy," Lynn Jr. comments.

"What's even going on, anyway?" Lola asks.

"I think it's about that rumor spreading around school," Luna guesses, "About some senior kids meddling with girls too young for them. That alone was messed up, dude."

"Why was Lincoln even involved?" Luan wonders.

"I don't know," the rocker sister answers. "Hearsay probably. I don't know. I don't tolerate rumors."

Leni then chastises Luan mistakenly, "Yeah Luan, you should not tolerate rumors. I know they are funny. But they are bad."

"What are you talking about?" Luan asks her.

"You know, you being rumorous?"

"I think you meant humorous, not rumorous."

"That's what I said."

But Lori overhear her sisters murmuring behind the door. "_I heard you guys! Scram first, please!_"

"She really is unhappy," Lana remarks, "She's like that since this morning."

"Probably ethical to keep the confidential nature of their discussion out of our personal consciousness," Lisa tells them.

"Meaning?" Luna replies.

"We leave them alone first," Lisa elaborates.

"Well, they better catch up with our _Love Boat_ marathon," Lynn comments. After that, the sisters walk out of the area, except for Lucy, who is secretly riddled with confusion.

Just at that moment, Lori finishes venting. "And, ugh, it's just hard. Do you get me?"

Lincoln simply apologizes, "I'm sorry Lori for everything. But trust me, nothing happened to us."

Lori simply takes a deep breath. But she sincerely replies, "I trust you, Lincoln."

* * *

**Fall has reached its depth.**

Last Thursday morning, a day before the party, Ronnie Anne and Sid are joyously jumping on their bed after they receive tickets to visit an escape room.

"This is so awesome! I can't believe we're actually going to an escape room!" Sid squirms.

"Yeah!" Ronnie Anne agrees, "Told you our entry for the skateboard design contest would actually be worth it!"

"I also can't believe we actually won it. Or we actually know how to design a skateboard."

"Take it from rookies who just went for it. What matters that tomorrow, we go in awesome quest on the most elaborate escape room of the region."

Ronnie Anne's mystery-telling tone delights Sid. "Wooh, I love the way you say it."

Ronnie Anne simply chuckles. "Yeah. Glad we have tomorrow ourselves. Uncle Carlos and Aunt Frida are out for a family picnic. So, Carlos, CJ, Carlitos, Sergio and Lalo are out of our pockets, for now. But tomorrow, it will be – in your words – awesome."

But just as the girls plan their exciting day tomorrow, Ronnie Anne's mother Maria knocks on the door and enters the room. "Ronalda, there you are. Sorry, you have to cancel your escape room trip tomorrow. Sorry too, Sid."

The girls are devastated about the favor, especially Ronnie Anne.

"What?! WHY?!" Ronnie Anne asks.

"I have to bring your abuelo and abuela to the hospital tomorrow for an emergency checkup. But don't worry, I have Bobby to call for a babysitter if he wants to go to his party."

Ronnie Anne feels not only disappointed that she has to scrap her plans but also embarrassed that her mother has required someone to babysit her. "Mom, I don't need a babysitter! I am already old enough to take care of myself."

"I know that, mija," Maria lovingly acknowledges her daughter. "But I just have a lot of things on my mind. I have to work on double shifts, just to secure your abuelo and abuela's health insurance. But don't worry, I can give you other time when you and Sid can go wherever you want."

"But mom," Ronnie Anne keeps pleading.

But Maria gives her final pleading, "Please mija."

Ronnie Anne clearly understands the weight of her mother's load. So, she begrudgingly agrees with her mother. "Fine…"

"Thank you." Maria then hugs her daughter, to which Ronnie Anne returns the hug tightly. "Don't worry. I'll make it up to you. I'll leave you to Bobby to call a babysitter for you."

"Okay…"

After that, Maria walks back to the Casagrande's flat proper, leaving a despondent Ronnie Anne in her room.

"So…what's the plan now?" Sid asks her friend.

"I don't know," Ronnie Anne sighs, now in a disgruntled tone. She is unsure of what is to come. Whatever the outcome may be, Ronnie Anne is in bad vibes.

Even until the next Friday, things do not go better as Bobby trudges through every directory of babysitters in the city or in the county but finds no one available.

He is just about to call the last person in his last with no significant progress. "Please, I can double the offer. I just need you to come in the last minute. Please!"

The caller then hangs up abruptly.

"Please!"

A downcast Ronnie Anne and an uncertain Sid witnesses Bobby lose his chance.

"So, zero hopes for a sitter?" Sid asks him.

"I'm afraid yes," Bobby confirms.

"So guess you have to miss the party?" Ronnie Anne responds.

"No, I guess we'll go for plan B."

For that, he brings Ronnie Anne and Sid with him to Royal Woods, explaining the conundrum later that Lincoln has to face.


	3. Chapter 2, Part 1: Fearful Foreshadowing

**Fall is where the heartless is.**

"I trust you, Lincoln…" Lori assures, even though she has a hard time trusting him after the hard case. "But I don't know if I can hold that much weight for you."

"You don't need to, Lori," Lincoln replies, sacrificing himself. "It's my fault. I'll take the bait."

But Lori holds him. "No Lincoln. I just want your face and yourself explaining to the school committee and to me. I need you to be frank if you are any of the girls do anything scandalous."

Lincoln then explains himself, "Okay Lori, you have to at least be with us on this. We did not do anything remotely scandalous. I don't even know why you think we are scandalous."

"Then ask the people who think this is news on top of the morning." Lori then throws the paper to her brother, showing the headline: "_Three Juvenile Seniors Hook Up with Four Young Girls_".

Lincoln never has been this outraged. "What is this? Is this really the school paper?!"

"That's what really the headline says," Lori bluntly tells him.

"I don't know what to do with this."

"Then, be honest with me starting now. And be honest to the council tomorrow. Can you please?"

Lincoln confidently gives this response, "I will. I promise."

Hearing that from her ever reliable brother, Lori prepares herself from her brother's revelation.

Three hours pass by, and Lucy thinks it is a better time to check out her brother. She nervously walks close to his room, with her left hand on her right shoulder, clearly concealing her unease.

Eventually, Lori walks out of the room in distress, not noticing Lucy standing by the side.

After which, Lucy sees her brother lying in the bed, with this arms covering his eyes. Even as he succumbs to his guilt, he senses his moody sister watching him. "Lucy, I thought you're going to have your poetry recital tonight?"

"It is next week, Lincoln," Lucy remarks.

Lincoln feels guilt. "Oh. Sorry about that."

"You don't need to." Lucy then climbs to his bed and holds his wrist. Just as she senses his pulse, the gloomy sister realizes she has to back his brother. "I hope you know what you are doing."

Lincoln just grumbles at the gravity of his situation. "I really don't know, Luce. I think I am as airheaded as Leni on this. No offense to Leni, but you know…"

"I can trust you," Lucy assures.

Lincoln then looks at his sister and sees the confidence on her basic expression yet persistent spirit. "Well, we have a long way to go."

Later on, Lincoln then group calls the following girls:

First is Ronnie Anne, who is cowering in discomfiture on her bed back in Great Lakes City. "Ronnie Anne, are you there?" Lincoln calls her out.

"_Here, Lincoln…_" she responds despondently.

Next is Sid Chang, who hides herself under her bed with her laptop. "Sid, you there?"

"_I am under my bed now_," Sid replies. "_My sister is suspecting now._"

"Ohh…"

The other girl is Stella, who is isolating herself on a corner of a café. "Stella, you present?"

"_Yeah_," Stella morosely replies, "_Here at the café. You know where_."

"Right."

And finally, the last girl is Girl Jordan, who hides herself in a tent on her backyard. "Girl Jordan, are you there? Sorry about everything."

"_No, it's okay, Lincoln_," she replies on the phone. "_My parents confused of why Huggins call them_."

"Is he summoning them?" Lincoln asks.

"Yep," she answers.

Taking a deep breath, Lincoln tells them, "Well guys, it's time."

* * *

**Fall is where the heart is.**

At that Friday afternoon, Lincoln cannot muster a word to a despondent Ronnie Anne or an anxious Sid.

Eventually, Lori drops the kids off at the Loud House.

Bobby reminds his sister and her friend and bids them goodbye. "I will try to call you throughout the night if we are about to leave or stay late. Just tell me if something has gone terribly, horribly, despicably, evilgregiously…"

Ronnie Anne immediately interrupts him, "Bobby, I get it. And I don't think there's such a word as 'evilgregiously'. But don't worry. I got myself covered."

"Oh thank goodness. Glad I can count on you." He then hugs his sister and also says goodbye to Sid. "We'll try to be back early as possible."

Lori then instructs her brother, "Okay Lincoln, take the girls to the movies or something. Just never lose them from your sight. If they need a place to sleep, hand them your room first."

"Why my room?" Lincoln complains.

"Lincoln?" Lori gives him a persistent eye, which he cannot deny nor say 'no' to.

"Fine," he succumbs.

Lori then hands him the $100 bucks. "Here. Just be safe and take care of them all the time. Promise me."

It takes a few seconds for Lincoln to comply. "I promise, Lori."

With that said, Lori embraces her brother before she and Bobby leave hurriedly to the outlet store for their outfits for the night. The hopeless trio just watch them drive off.

Later on, Lincoln opens the TV for the girls to watch. He then gives them two glasses of orange fizz and PB&J sandwiches. "Here, if you are hungry."

"Don't ask," Ronnie Anne utters, leaving Lincoln rather uneasy with his friend's cold shoulder.

He can only say, "Okay…" The 11-year-old then pretends to be busy to cool off the tension.

Not wanting an awkward moment to wedge their connection, Sid breaks the ice, "Hey...Lincoln, you said you have 11 sisters, right?"

"Ten actually," he clarifies. "I'm the middle child."

"Oh, that must be real sad."

Confused, he just goes along, "Well, it's fate. Hehe…"

Sid just retains the beam on her face. "Where are they now?"

"They're out. All."

She just nods her head.

Minutes go by, and with the girls' attention glued to the TV screen, Lincoln sees this as an opportunity to sneak into his online gaming session.

He then tells the girls, "Okay guys, I will be back. You just be here while I...fix...something in my room. Okay? Just be right back!" Lincoln then hurries to his room and locks the door, bewildering Ronnie Anne and Sid. Because of that, they check him out.

Lincoln switches on his laptop and connects to his online platform. He then places his headset to contact his buddies. "Alright guys, just got connected. Ready to roll!"

"_I thought you're with Ronnie Anne and her friend?_" Clyde asks back through his avatar.

"They're watching downstairs," Lincoln brags. "They won't be a bother to us."

Right at that moment, Ronnie Anne catches him and closes his laptop down.

"What?!" Lincoln gasps.

"Fix something in your room, huh?" Ronnie Anne retorts.

"Well, I'm fixing my time to play."

"Lincoln, just tell us if you want to act like a jerk to us, so we'll be clear."

At that point, Lincoln realizes that Ronnie Anne is testing his morale. With no other way out, he moves his laptop aside begrudgingly. "Fine. What do you guys want to do?"

Sid happily suggests, "Well, we have a yard for ourselves. I know what to do."


	4. Chapter 2, Part 2: Fearful Foreshadowing

**Fall is at the corner**.

That Monday night, the parents of Lincoln Loud confront him about the big case that is dangling on his back. Because of that, they give him the necessary sermon that lasted for almost three hours nonstop. Lynn Sr. questions him about his uncharacteristic morale that rooted from the "scandal". Yet Rita is the more composed, in that she gives her thoughtful insight about Lincoln's predicament but questions why the whole case had to be considered as "scandal" to begin with. Either way, Lincoln asserts that they did nothing illegal nor unethical.

For the next day, a blistery Tuesday morning, Lincoln formally prepares for the hearing by dressing sharp with a button-up orange top and black slacks. He releases a deep sigh, worried how will the day's outcome go.

Lucy knocks to his door and confronts her dear brother, along with their sisters. "Hey Lincoln…"

"Oh Lucy, guys, why aren't you in school?" Lincoln asks.

"Well, we heard what you're going through," Leni acknowledges.

"And we know you so much that all of those stuff is so hard to believe," Lana adds.

"Well, except some stuff," Lola asserts, "But that's beside the point."

Luna then assures him, "The point is, bro, we're here for you, whatever you are going through."

"Thanks Luna," Lincoln responds, heartfelt at her assurance.

"Yeah, we know that for so much jabs we do to each other, a scandal is thousand times beneath you," Lynn proclaims.

"Yeah, even for me, I would not gossip that bad," Leni says.

"Take that from, Leni," Luan says. "But Lincoln, I have to ask this: what really happened that night?"

"Nothing really," Lincoln defends. "We just found a couple of guys who are cool. We hang out and that's it."

With that simple fact thrown out, Lisa is at least convinced. "Now that's an argument that is at least legally plausible."

"Trust me guys. We did nothing wrong."

With Lincoln's deposition laid down, Lucy feels his wrist one last time. And the calmness of his nerves really shows. "We're with you on this, Lincoln," Lucy assures.

"Of course," Lynn adds, "Even if some guys in school become jerks. Let them hate all they want."

"You can count on us, Lincoln," Luan guarantees.

For that, Lincoln is confident about sharing his testimony in the hearing. Yet, as he walks to Lori's room, the innocent young Loud sees his sister standing frozen and panicking inside as her face makes it look like she is controlling her tears.

Her expression continues discretely, even as they and their parents are en route to the Royal Woods High, the venue for the hearing. Their somber drive is entirely silent since Mr. and Mrs. Loud already gave their word to their children.

As they arrive at the school, a crowd of high school students envelops them. Both Lori and Lincoln get down from the van and proceed to the venue. However, they are greeted by heckles and teases by a politically-minded breed of students.

The negative reception is too much for them to handle that Lori tries her best to not break down to all of them. Even inches away from the hearing room, they are still blocked by hecklers.

Thankfully, Lincoln's advisor Mrs. Johnson bursts from the door to their rescue. "Kids, go back to your classrooms now!" The students oblige, but still contain their chuckle.

She then instructs the two, "Lori, the main meeting room. Lincoln, come with me."

Lincoln proceeds as such. The room only contains him, his teacher and a researcher from Royal Woods High Daily, the high school paper. But Mrs. Johnson sees him unwelcome, "Mr. Davidson, can you leave for a moment?"

"I am here to cover Loud's case," he says.

"I am gonna need to confront my student here, so if you mind the confidentiality," she asserts.

"Yeah, but I am called by the school paper to be here…"

"Please get out, Mr. Davidson! Thank you very much."

With no choice, the senior student researcher begrudgingly exits the room, leaving Lincoln a little unease when he glances on him with resentment.

Sesnsing some shady on the guy, Lincoln secretly texts Lucy: "_Lucy, search about Davidson from the Royal Woods High Daily. Something about him._"

"Sorry about that. He was my student before. Now, he is crazy and free in high school. But he loves covering news stories for the school."

"I can really see that…" Lincoln softly agrees.

"Okay Lincoln, now that you're here, you have to know why I am here. I am here to defend in your behalf. So in some way, I am your lawyer. And knowing you, I am aware you did many mistakes at school. But I know you and your friends would never go those lengths. But I need to hear it from you first, crystal clear, so that your parents, their parents and Principal Huggins will understand. Now, can you tell me all what happened?"

With that, before the actual hearing proper with the two principals and the parents of the kids, Lincoln shares everything from the start.

* * *

**Fall is from the corner**.

At Sid's insistence, the three go to the backyard during sunset period. Sid conveniently finds a frisbee disk lying on the grass. She then initiates the two for a game of ultimate frisbee.

"So, this is called ultimate frisbee. So usually, we have two teams. But since it is just the three of us, we can do it monkey-in-the-middle style."

"I don't think it can work that way," Lincoln comments.

"Oh it will," Sid asserts. "So, the one 'it' stays in the middle and tries to catch the disk. When he does catch the disk, the last person who throws the disk will be 'it'. And the rest goes from there."

"Are there no special rules?" Ronnie Anne asks.

"Not really. Haven't thought about it. Maybe no tapping the disk when one of us has our hands on the disk. The usual violations."

"Okay…cool," Ronnie Anne agrees.

"Okay, I'll take the lead, then you guys follow." After that, Sid throws the Frisbee to them, with Lincoln leaping to catch it and placing Ronnie Anne as the "it" in the middle. The catch continues until Ronnie Anne catches the disk, placing Lincoln in the middle.

For that hour, it just becomes a series of baits-and-switches on Lincoln and Ronnie Anne since Sid is surprisingly skilled at ultimate frisbee. Though, Ronnie Anne always get the upper hand.

Their dreadfully tiring match culminates in Lincoln accidentally slamming his elbow on Ronnie Anne's forehead, making them fall to the ground. Even when lying on grass, the two fight over the disk.

"Guys, are you all right?" Sid asks them and lifts them up.

"Yeah, that was just rough," Ronnie Anne pants.

"Yeah," Lincoln says as he brushes off the dust, annoying the young Latina.

"Maybe, we can pause Frisbee for another time," Sid suggests, then returns the disk.

"Maybe," Lincoln agrees. While taking few breaths, he looks to Ronnie Anne. "What a game."

"Yeah," Ronnie Anne replies. "Needed that."

"Sorry about everything. I realized you are fed up with things not working your way."

"It's fine Lincoln. It's not your fault. Sorry too."

The two then reconcile, with each exchanging smiles to each other.

As Sid returns to them, she asks, "Okay, what can we do now?"

"It's getting late," Lincoln notes. "Maybe three boxes of pizza and a _Dream Boat_ marathon."

"Oh I like what you're thinking," Sid reacts.

But Ronnie Anne retorts, "Yeah but that's like what we usually do all the time."

"Maybe the movies?" Sid suggests.

"Nah, not much in the cinemas," Ronnie Anne notes.

"How about the café? We can get ourselves ice lattes," Lincoln suggests.

With no other choice, the two go along.


	5. Chapter 3, Part 1: Growing Gains

**Fall is shaking its hand.**

Lincoln, Ronnie Anne and Sid head towards the civilized part of the suburbs and settle on a lowly yet comfy coffee shop. The interior of the café is really designed for the least demanding adolescent with the place littered with potted plants, hipster décor, wooden tables, soft pillows, carpeted and wooden flooring, jazz music and provided board games in one corner. It is the ideal place for hangouts.

The girls occupy one table with a wide glass window view on the left, while Lincoln buys the drinks for them. Ronnie Anne lays her head on the table as Sid browses her phone. The latter cheers her friend up by showing a photo of a cute, inspirational dog photo with the caption, "Woof you have is a good life". "Good, right?" she tells her.

Ronnie Anne just chuckles, without being obvious.

Lincoln then walks to the table. "Well, drinks will be served."

"So, what's on our minds now?" Ronnie Anne asks.

"Well, this café has everything," Lincoln says. "Well, not everything. But anything that can solve anyone's boredom."

Ronnie Anne then acknowledges two young adults across their table as a keen observation. "Well, I guess you can call those two guys coloring with crayons as curing anyone's boredom."

Lincoln interprets it as another sarcastic banter from Ronnie Anne. But he wishes not to pursue an argument with her.

Sid is scrolling on her phone, looking for updates on the social media feed for Twelve is Midnight. It is just to occupy the time. But even then, seeing her fandom's repetitive comment feels meandering now. "Let's do something fun, even if we have to talk gibberish for five minutes."

"Sid, we try to finish each other's sentences couple of times, and mostly, we fail at it," Ronnie Anne tells her. "So, I don't know how gibberish could solve that."

"We did, Ronnie Anne, when we try to eat and run at your abuela's house party, so we can rush to the last preview of that space movie."

"I was doing gestures to you."

"Oh. I think I was the one talking with my mouth full of your abuela's paella."

"So, yeah, my point exactly."

"I remember that time I was playing this-or-that to your abuela's friends, just to pass the time. It was a senior's round I did with them."

"How did it go?" Lincoln enters the conversation.

"Kind of what you expect. Old or new stuff," Sid answers, "Like jog or walk, walkie-talkies or cellphones, red apples or Apple plus, and so on." Bringing that up, she suggests to the two, "Why don't we do a round of this-or-that?"

"Not sure if I am into question-and-answer games," Lincoln hesitates.

"There's no right or wrong answer here. Just your own opinion. Judgment is on no one."

Though Lincoln and Ronnie Anne see no point to engage in such intrigue, they push through, not wanting to disappoint a giddy Sid.

Sid Chang starts off to Ronnie Anne, "Ronnie Anne, cat or dog?"

"Don't want to disappoint, Lalo. Dog," Ronnie answers. "Lincoln, morning or evening."

"Not a morning person, so yeah," Lincoln answers. "But back to you, message or call?"

"Call. Sid, summer or winter?"

"I love summer. Lincoln, pop or rock?"

"You can thank my rocker sister Luna for that. Ronnie Anne, subway or skateboard?"

"What's the relation? Skate. Lincoln, party or chill?"

"I'd rather chill. Sid, chocolate or cookies?"

"You kidding? Who could resist cookies?"

The game goes on from there as three exchange mundane yet feel-good questions in any random set, just before their drinks arrive.

"Sing."

"Comics."

"Pie."

"Plushies."

"Gym class."

"Soccer."

"Musicals."

After fifteen minutes, the luster grows tired for them that they spout anything from their mind.

Sid mutters, "Dragon, magic, phone booths that turned to Turdises…"

"What does Turdises mean?" Lincoln asks her.

"OHhhhhh uhhhhhhhh…?" Sid means to say another term to name the operational phone booth for a famous science-fiction show.

Suddenly, a barista with a raven hair locks, a shaved facial hair, glasses and a slightly buff body gives them their drinks for the hour. "Drinks for Lincoln, Ronnie Anne and Sid. Here you go." He gives Lincoln a blended iced coffee drink with his name written on the paper cup, same with Ronnie Anne and Sid. (Though, for Sid's case, her cup had the writing, "Sid, enjoy the day dude!")

"The last one's mine," Sid indicates.

"Oh, so you're Sid?" the barista reacts, "I thought you were a dude."

Sid cheerfully acknowledges, "It's fine. I get that a lot. I kinda like the note in my cup. Thanks…" She reads the barista's nametag. "Felix."

He warmly thanks them back, "My pleasure. Glad you like the ambience. Hope you guys have fun."

Lincoln thanks him, "We will…if we can think of something fun."

Hearing that, the barista suggests, "If that's the case, might I want to suggest you check out our brand-new boardgame shelf?"

Felix then shows the three kids of the other section of the café, more designed for friendly hangouts. He points to the three columns of shelves stacked with boardgames and cardgames that anyone could ever imagine.

Lincoln, Ronnie Anne and Sid stare at the shelves as if they are glowing on their eyes. "Wow!"

"There's everything here!" Lincoln exclaims. "D&D, Monopoly, Cluedo, Battleship, Risk, Games of Generals, Conquest of the Empire…"

"Okay, okay, we get it," Ronnie Anne stops him from geeking out all of a sudden.

Sid then shows a box of UNO Cards, implying her suggestion. "Guys, let's try this."

"UNO?" Lincoln and Ronnie Anne gasp.

"Wise choice," Felix says. "Though that cardgame is known to destroy friendships, allegedly. But just kidding, it's harmless. Some took it the wrong way."

Still, that does not convince Lincoln and Ronnie Anne to try the cardgame for themselves.

However, Sid pleads to them, "Please guys! I haven't played this game for a while after my family moved to Great Lakes City. Please Ronnie Anne! It'll be fun."

Convinced, Ronnie Anne would do anything to form bonding moments with Sid, even if it is encountering a notorious game that Sid had a bit of nostalgia for. "Why the heck not? Might as well try it than be bored to death."

"Same with me," Lincoln goes along.

"Great!" Felix projects. "The problem, though, is you need to have more than four players for UNO."

Lincoln responds, "No worries about it. I'll just call up Clyde." The 11-year-old then dials up his number. However, he does not responds.

He calls up again. No response.

He tries again. Nothing.

"Dang it!"

"I thought he is on your online RPG," Ronnie Anne brings up.

"I know. But he would usually answer his phone whenever I call up," Lincoln mentions.

"Guess he's occupied."

"Man, he owes me." Lincoln then takes the second option: text-blasting his other friends. He texts to Rusty, Liam, Zack, Stella and Girl Jordan, somehow. "I'll try hitting up some of my friends. Let's see if they'll answer."

"Well, wouldn't count on that," Ronnie Anne remarks.

Felix then suggests, "What if I could join you guys? Even just for one game?"

The three are surprised when such a barista makes that suggestion.

"Are you sure about that? We don't want to interfere your job," Ronnie Anne responds.

"Don't worry. My shift ends on three minutes," he expounds. "And I don't bite. Just wanting to help kids like you to make the most of your time. Plus, I know most of the games on the shelf. So, you'll need a game master."

Sid is delighted about that fact being a "game master". "That seems fun. I always want to feel what it is like mastering games."

Feeling Sid's vibe, Lincoln speaks for them, "Lead the way."

In starts the long night.


	6. Chapter 3, Part 2: Growing Gains

**Fall is cashing its luck.**

The game of intense UNO ensues as Lincoln has four cards remaining, most are regular ones (9 red, 1 yellow, 8 yellow and 7 blue).

Next, Felix has one card left (2 green).

Then, Ronnie Anne has three (5 red, 3 yellow and a blue reverse card).

And finally, Sid has five cards on her hand (1 green, 5 green, green skip card, a wild card and a wild draw-four card).

The entire deck had ran out at this point until the next leftover shuffle. So, this is a clincher round to determine who gets empty his/her entire deck first and be proclaimed winner.

It is Lincoln's turn, and a 2-red card is on the table. The 11-year-old turns his 9-red card, making only three cards left for him.

Felix takes his turn. "I got nothing. Skip," he indicates as he takes a card (yellow skip card).

Ronnie Anne claims her turn and drops her 5-red card, leaving her with two. "Last two left."

Sid then has her turn. Seeing the 5, she drops the 5-green card, leaving her with four.

The cycle rolls back to Lincoln. However, he has no card to match. "Skip." He then takes a card (8-yellow).

Receiving this news, Felix drops his 2-green card. But before he could exclaim, both Ronnie Anne and Sid state, "UNO!"

Felix accepts with a playful groan and then takes two cards (1 blue and 6 blue). "You got me! You got me!"

It is Ronnie Anne's turn. However, she has no card that can be paired to the 2-green card.

Yet, Sid does with 1-green, dropping it and leaving her with three. "Lucky me."

Lincoln feels challenged, but at least he has the 1-yellow card to release. He has three cards left.

"Oh you're getting good," Felix remarks. So, he draws his yellow skip card towards Ronnie Anne.

"Come on! I almost had it, Felix!" the latter squeals.

It is Sid's triumphant turn. To match the yellow skip card, she draws her green skip card, leaving her with last two cards.

"What?!" Lincoln exclaims.

"She got you, bro!" Felix banters. Seeing no matching cards, he takes on from the deck. And luckily, it is a good draw with a blue reverse card.

Lincoln is lucky to get back in the ballgame as he draw his 7-blue.

But Sid has few tricks on her sleeve. "Ronnie Anne, we are still friends after this. We still live as best friends." With that witty remark, she gives out her wild draw-four card. "UNO!"

Needless to say, Ronnie Anne is bewildered by Sid's counter-attack. "WHAT?!"

Sid just cheerfully acknowledges her victory, "I did it! I did it! I did it!"

Ronnie Anne tells her, "Oh, I hate you now. I now see a side that I can hate you for."

"I love you too, Ronnie Anne!" she teases her.

The former playfully goes along, as their strong friendship is also centered on self-deprecation. "Ohh you'll see. You'll see…when we get back to Great Lakes."

"Great Lakes?" Felix picks up.

"Yeah, Ronnie Anne and I leave in Great Lakes. And we leave in the same apartment building," Sid exposits.

"So, that's how you two became friends?"

"Uh-uh."

Felix simply smiles.

Going back to the game, Sid tells the next color, "Green".

Felix looks back at his deck and sees none that much. However, the card he obtains (7 green) pairs nicely to the card.

Luckily, Lincoln's deck stacks up too. But he sends out his 7-blue card.

Though, that is all useless when Sid drops her wild card, ending her deck and naming her the WINNER. "YES! VICTORY'S MINE!"

The rest applauds her for her third winning streak tonight.

"Good game, guys. Good game," Felix says.

"Pause guys. I'll need to use the bathroom," Ronnie Anne remarks.

"Second floor. Straight, then take right," the barista gives directions to the latter.

"Got it."

The posse then take a break after three rounds of UNO.

Sid then asks Felix and also Lincoln, "So, what do I win?"

"You win UNO some bragging rights. But if you got more than five wins, latte's on us," Felix tells her. "But you seemed pretty good at UNO."

"It was a long time I haven't played UNO," Sid adds. "It just dawned on me now. Never thought I was this much of a pro."

"Oh, I see a pro when I see one."

Sid simply chuckles at his response. "Nah, kind of sad being a pro at UNO. I would rather stick to being a pro to Twelve is Midnight, thumb-wrestling or ASMR."

"You like Twelve is Midnight?"

"Yeah. Do you like K-Pop?"

Felix simply brightens his customer-friendly smile, answering her question.

Abruptly, Ronnie Anne returns to her seat. "Okay. Back. What's the next game?"

Speaking of abruptly, two girls come across the gang on the table. "Hey guys!"

Lincoln recognizes them and introduces them to the rest, "Guys, this is Stella. And that's Girl Jordan."

"Hey there. Long time," Ronnie Anne recognizes Girl Jordan.

"Oh hey!" Girl Jordan responds the same way, "Ronnie Anne, such a long time. How are…how are you? Last time you're here, you said you have to move out to the big city."

"I did," Ronnie Anne answers.

"How are you?"

"Oh, it was cool. It was a rocky start, but I grew so much into the city. Just right."

Stella asks Lincoln, "So, what got you here?"

"Simply chilling," Lincoln answers. "Had to skip RPG night, thanks to Lori."

"Yeah, me too," Stella adds. "My computer broke down. And I read every book we have at home. So alone and bored right now. At least you had company"

"Oh right." Lincoln then introduces his classmates to the new guys. "This is Sid, she's with Ronnie Anne. And that's Felix, he just drop by since he knows the games here.'

"That's what you came here for?" Girl Jordan asks.

"Long story," Lincoln clarifies.

"Lincoln's sister ditch him, so does Bobby. So, he had to 'babysit' us," Sid answers.

"Hey, don't put it that way," Lincoln quips. "More on chaperoning while Lori is out on her senior acquaintance party."

"I feel you," Girl Jordan tells him. "My babysitter ditched me at home, so she can sneak to that party. Well, she bribed me not to tell my parents."

The kids are in disbelief over the older kid's deceitful agendas.

But Felix breaks the ice, "That's all messed up. Sorry if I had to interfere, but I've been there. But take it from me. I placed my mind away from other stuff."

"What other stuff?" Girl Jordan asks.

Felix afterwards stands up from his seat and unlocks a closet from behind them. The girls and Lincoln check out to see an entire cabinet of boardgames, cardgames and other play sets that are the back and bone of the café. They gasp in awe as they glance on shelf to shelf, like every item is illuminating right before their eyes. "That's why I love working here."

"Can we…?" Sid asks Felix.

"While you have the time." With a simple nod from him, the kids rejoice.

From here and out, the gang goes through different games as the course of two hours. From Hungry Hungry Hippos to Jenga, from Pictionary to Taboo, from snakes-and-ladders to scrabble, and from Ultimate Werewolf to the Game of Life, the kids have a time of their lives for one night. All the while, they chug milk chocolate-flavored cold beverages, waived by Felix.

Back on the game of Jenga, Sid and Girl Jordan are about to take out one block from below. They slowly but surely take out that block, using another block.

Suddenly, Felix interrupts them, "Uhmm guys."

The two gasp but they keep the Jenga tower static.

"Don't surprise us like that," Girl Jordan pants.

"Sorry, but the store had to close early," Felix tells them.

"That early?" Lincoln asks, noting about the current time: 8:05 pm.

"The store had to close this early. Routine pest control inspection."

"Well, that's a bummer. Wish we could last longer," Sid reacts.

Felix makes this suggestion, "I have games in my house. We could play there."

Not wanting for them to cause more trouble, since he has his reservations over Felix being still a stranger to them, Lincoln cautiously suggests, "Or we could pick up your games from your house and continue playing in my place."

"Better too," Felix agrees to Lincoln's suggestion. "Don't worry, fellas. I have a car. I could drive first to my place and pick up some games, and play in Lincoln's place."

"Fine by me," Sid agrees.

"Well as long as it does not interfere with my curfew," Stella replies.

"Yeah me too," Girl Jordan says.

"Better be quick," Ronnie Anne remarks, "Bobby and Lori might come early."

"Well, let's go then," Felix tells them.

The kids pick up their drinks and rearrange the table. Sid drops the Jenga tower.

Things will get wilder next.


	7. Chapter 4, Part 1: Emblematic Escalation

**Fall has a breaking point.**

Lori and Bobby are hastily preparing for the senior's autumn party. They did last minute shopping after they dropped off Lincoln, Ronnie Anne and Sid in the Loud House. In a secure location, they dress up together (cue awkward and questionable ethics), with Lori donning a simple blue cocktail dress with the floral designs on the edges and hairpin hat while Bobby dressing up in a hipster old suit with a maroon bow tie and a beanie (almost looking like a newsie).

"Oh Lori, this is really hasty," Bobby remarks as he buttons his tight vest over his suit. "We should have thought about our outfits a month before."

Lori belts out, "That's what I told you, Boo-boo Bear! Never mind, I can't sweat now." The Loud sister is currently buttoning her dress from the spine. But she cannot reach behind. "A little help."

"Hold on." He rushes his buttons to get to Lori. Once he did, he tightly adjusts the dress for the button to enter the button loops. But Lori hurriedly adjusts the chest part of her cocktail dress, tightening the torso.

"Bobby, not so tight! So tight!" she pants as she gasps for air from Bobby's attempts at buttoning. "Bobby!"

"Hold on. I'm about to reach it!"

"Just wait! Bobby, stop first. Let me adjust the top first!"

Bobby releases his hand from her dress' spine to allow Lori to fix her dress to the most delicate way to wear it.

After that, Lori gives him the go signal. "Alright, go on."

Bobby then places her dress buttons inside the button loops without difficulty or pain for Lori.

"Sorry Boo-boo bear, I'm literally nervous about the party. I wanted to make the best impression to the Chavez University guys. For you and me, for our future life in college."

Like a loyal boyfriend, Bobby sympathizes with her plight. "I understand you, Lori. But make what we might have for tonight, we'll always be together. We'll find a way in college."

Touched, Lori has her eyes water in full emotion. "Boo-boo bear!" She then embrace him to cherish that romantic gesture. Bobby does the same.

Twenty minutes later, they step out on what turns out to be a single-toilet bathroom of a local Burpin' Burger. A queue of people is aghast to see the two lovebirds step out together in a fast food bathroom. The awkward vibe sets in.

Lori and Bobby freeze in spot, but they slowly peek their way out.

"Nothing happened," Bobby defends.

"I see nothing from him. We were both dressed up!" Lori adds as they run off to the Vanzilla and head to the Royal Woods school grounds.

The senior's autumn party is a tradition in the Royal Woods High School to properly introduce the seniors to the college community and readily allow various universities around Michigan to promote their campuses to the students. It is a formal garden banquet. Thus, every student is expected to dress sharply.

Lori and Bobby arrive in the event, just in time as the other seniors gather to have their group photo. Other students like Dana, Teri, Becky Tad are also in the function on their formal outfits.

And of course, Carol Pingrey is in the same event, dressed in a lavender gown. She greets Lori with a hug. "Lori, Lori, you look so stunning!"

"Carol!" She hugs back. "You know my boyfriend Bobby, right?"

"Oh right." Carol then shakes Bobby's hand. "Carol Pingrey, Bobby."

"Oh, I remember you used to be rivals with Lori?" he replies.

"That was a long time ago," Carol replies. "Bygone was bygone." She then turns to Lori, "Speaking of rivals, Lori, I heard Bianca and Sooyoung are vying for top honors in our batch. Can you believe it? They have straight chances on being eyed on by other campuses."

Lori spots their rival duo, who are interacting with more seasoned teachers in Royal Woods High, who introduce them to college personnel. "Let them be. I'm not literally after Ivy League-ish guys."

The three huddle together, especially during the formal ceremony where they are placed in tables. The program starts at 5:00 PM goes on with the obligatory speech from an honors student from last year's batch and a meet-and-greet social activity, wherein the college students are paired up with the high school students. There is also the obligatory dinner, where they are only served light snacks like cookies, pastries, pesto and fish fillet. The party is like any formal gathering in a corporate setting or a wedding.

But that is not what is on the eyes of most of the students now. During dinner, Lori spots seven athletes representing Chavez University, wearing their official jackets. "Bobby, look. We need to show ourselves to them."

When Bobby spots them, he observes two of them to have buffed-up bodies, akin to football players. "Woah, those guys are the real deal Olympians."

"Come on!" Lori insists with her taking his arm and dragging him towards them.

"Lori, slow down!"

Once she gets to them (two male footballers, one male and two female marathon runners, a male swimmer and a female golfer), Lori introduces herself to them with in-the-moment confidence, "Hello Lori Loud, and this is my boyfriend, Bobby Santiago." Bobby gives a wave. "We have planning so long to enter Chavez University."

"You guys make their right choice," one jock with a dark complexion tells them.

"So, what got you interested in Chavez?" one female runner asks.

"My uncle is a professor in Chavez. And we legitimately love the campus," Bobby answers.

"I love that. We really love high school seniors saying their love Chavez for the love of it," the first jocks expounds.

"Well, thanks," Lori replies. "I also heard that you guys have a golfing team, so would love to be part of it."

"Golf you say?" the Chavez female golfer interferes. "Low and long trajectory, pitch or sand?"

"A pitching wedge."

She asks one more, "Five iron?"

"A mashie."

"Aim for Women's Open?"

At that point, even though she had her streak in answering basic golf trivia, Lori is unsure how she must answer her question. So, she nervously answers, "Aim for Women's Open…?"

Needless to say, the golfer is impressed. "I'll tell you what Lori, you hang out with us for the after party, and we'll tell you more about Chavez."

"After party?"

"Yeah, we'll have it in this big house over a lake. You should come with us," the male swimmer encourages them.

Lori and Bobby are delighted to receive the invitation. However, they are unsure if they can tag along since they still have responsibilities at home.

So, Lori gives her word, "Thanks, but…"

Suddenly, Carol pops up from her left, "Lori, sorry if I interrupt, but there are some business students who are inviting me to the after party. We should go!"

"Carol, you couldn't be…?"

"Come on, Lori. Like you said, this is a good impression. What could be worse?"

Slowly, Lori sees the situation through the eyes of opportunity to get closer to any opportune college colleague. With that, she hesitantly tells the Chavez kids, "Well, we could drop by."

Three hours later, Felix drives Lincoln, Ronnie Anne, Sid, Stella and Girl Jordan on his sleek pickup truck. They travel towards a deeper part of the suburbs, into the section where most of the wealthiest families of Royal Woods reside.

"Seems you're driving us around Beverly Hills," Girl Jordan quips.

"We're almost there," Felix tells them.

He takes a secret driveway, which leads them near the shoreline of a local suburban lake. The path seems peaceful for a while.

However, a red cup with a fizzy cider is thrown to his windshield. "Dang it! What the…?"

The gang then discovers a group of older party-ready teenagers walking towards the venue.

"Where are all these guys come from?" Stella wonders.

"Must be a secret hippie commune," Ronnie Anne sarcastically answers.

Felix drives the truck slowly along the drive. He is able to arrive on a second gate to his house, which also has a crowd of teenagers entering. Much to his behest, the grassy driveway is filled with cars. But he continues to drive.

"Are we in the right place?" Sid asks.

Felix did not answer.

However, with sitting on the front seat, Lincoln spots that their destination is a mansion with an ivory brick wall divide. He then brings up Sid's concern, "Felix, do you live there?"

After few seconds, he admits, "Yes, I live there."

"So, you're rich?" Lincoln asks more.

Hesitating on his answer, Felix tells them, "It's a long story." After which, he parks the truck on few blocks before the entrance. "Look guys, sorry that you have to see this. I didn't even this is taking place."

"What are you talking about?! You lived there and never realize that you have a huge house party in there?" Ronnie Anne brings up her concern.

"I'll explain everything on our way out. Just stay here. Lock the door. Stay inside at all means necessary. I'll be quick!" With that, Felix hurriedly rushes inside the mansion.

But back in the pickup truck, numerous concerns from the kids are easily brought to the table.

"Can you believe that a guy is that rich and still be a barista?" Girl Jordan surmises.

"I am sure there is an explanation there," Stella says.

"He better have one, or else," Lincoln adds.

The atmosphere is gradually growing wilder as many older kids enter the mansion premises. The house party is almost in the same levels as _Animal House_ and _Project X_.

Suddenly, one aloof teen scares the kids by pasting his face on the window. He does not notice them, but he is dragged back inside by his friends.

More house drinks are splattered to the truck. The chaotic scenes outside gets them the impression that they are in a zombie movie. One dude with a ginger afro jump scares them from the windshield and inadvertently throws up heavily on it.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

The five of them gets so scared that they obtain the car keys and escape out of the truck to safety.


	8. Chapter 4, Part 2: Emblematic Escalation

**Fall has its loose ends.**

Lincoln, Ronnie Anne, Sid, Stella and Girl Jordan retreat to the other lane of their parking space. They haplessly witness three teens mock the teen with the orange afro throw up largely on Felix's pickup truck.

"Probably he had to throw up after he spun his car?" Girl Jordan assumes.

"That doesn't matter now," Ronnie Anne responds. She then suggests, "We are not supposed to be here. We have to get out of this place."

However, Sid reacts, "But what about Felix?"

Before Ronnie Anne can respond to her, Lincoln warns, "Hide!" and hides them by ducking their heads to the ground.

"What is it?" Stella asks.

Lincoln then points his finger when he spots Lori in the company of her newfound friends in Chavez University. "Lori's here!"

"Lori?" the girls gasp.

"What's she doing in a party like this?" Girl Jordan gives her concern.

Ronnie Anne concludes that if Lori is going to the party, then her brother Bobby is in the same company. "Wait, if Lori's with them, then that means…?" Though, spotting him along with the Chavez kids answers her question. "Yep. Should have known."

"Why are they even with some college jocks?" Stella asks.

"I guess they're from the same senior party they went," Lincoln answers unsurely.

"That would be so questionable," Girl Jordan comments.

"Wait," Ronnie Anne tells them as she squints her eyes to get a sharper view of the jock's jersey emblem. "Chavez? Chavez University?"

"You know about them?" Stella asks her.

"Chavez University is where Ronnie Anne's Uncle Carlos teaches as a professor," Sid answers for her. "My guess is he's not gonna like to know this."

The five just witness Lori and Bobby being escorted inside by the nine college athletes who invited them to a riotous party. Once they are clear, Lincoln signals them to move. "Let's head outta here!"

However, as they proceed, a brutish jock stands up with a megaphone to a barrel below the slope from the concrete parking space. And he gives a special announcement. "Party people in the house! We all have kinds of people coming to the party, so we have a special treatment for those little squids who claim they are seniors!"

"But we are seniors," one short-heighted student tells him, which gets hum being surrounded by angrier jocks.

"Not buying that," the jock replies. "We have some middle school/elementary squirts sneaking in our party. Anyone of them is dead!"

"YEAHHHHH!"

The teenagers cheer for the remark. But it only sends alarming signals for Lincoln and the gang.

"We better flee!" Lincoln shrieks. The kids then retreat to the direction where the mansion is.

However, they are blocked by two blond jocks. "Where you kids think you are going?" they ask.

But Ronnie Anne unleashes her self-defense instincts by kicking both jocks on the face. "Let's run!"

"But where would we go?" Girl Jordan asks hysterically.

When a crowd of older teens are about towards their direction, they head to the parking spaces in front of the mansion wall and cower between the hood of a sedan and a corner pillar.

Lincoln taps his foot to hear a metal clanging on his base. He sees it to be a drain cover and lifts it hurriedly. "Guys, this may be a bad idea. But we have to!"

The four girls quickly catch Lincoln's idea of them escaping through the sewer hole.

But Girl Jordan speaks for them and objects to the idea, "Nah-ah! I would do anything but dive on that ditch and cover myself with filth!"

That is when they hear the crowd of agitated party-ready teenagers accepting the jock's challenge of finding any signs of younger kids in the party.

"Cover myself with filth than death," Stella utters frighteningly, then jumps to the drainage hole.

Sid follows her. "GERONIMO!"

Ronnie Anne follows suit. "AHHHH!"

Lincoln convinces a nervous Girl Jordan. "Girl Jordan, jump in right now!"

With no choice provided, she holds her breath before she leaps to the hole. "If we find that dude, I'm going to pound his face!" After that statement, she covers her nose and dives.

Lincoln is the last to plunge so he can put back the drainage cover back to avoid being traced. But as he falls to the hole, he quickly lands on the four girls.

"Oops! Sorry!" he politely acknowledges.

"It's fine, Lincoln," Stella tells him. "We're fine, even if that was a steep drop."

"We're fine, girl?" Girl Jordan complains. "We're fine. We are in a sewage network."

"We wouldn't be sure of that," Ronnie Anne tells her. "This must be just the rain drainage system."

"How would you know that?" Girl Jordan asks her.

"Something I picked up from living in the city. There are two systems: the rain pipes and the sewer pipes. We're lucky that we're in the rain pipes."

Meanwhile, Lincoln opens the flashlight option on his phone and leads the girls through the pipes. "Okay, we walk through this till we find a way out. Okay?"

"Yeah," each of them agrees.

With that, they trudge through the claustrophobic rain drainage system until they find the next exit. It is a scene straight out of _Aliens_. Lincoln lights the way. Ronnie Anne follow him. Sid gets her curiosity high. Girl Jordan is cowering behind her. And Stella is cautious.

After a few minutes, they spot another drainage with welded ladder steps (conveniently). They climb it immediately. Lincoln opens the cover and exclaims in freedom, "We're free!" However, he discovers, to his dismay, that they enter the premises of the walled mansion where the wild party is taking place. Their location is in an open-air villa, adjacent to the pool. "Dang it."

"What is it, Lincoln?" Ronnie Anne asks.

"We entered the mansion," he tells them.

However, he is spotted by a Chinese-American student with a K-Pop boy band hairstyle. "Woah kid, where did you come from?"

Lincoln stammers, not wanting to get caught.

But the teen pulls him out, as well as the girls. "Where did you guys come from?"

"There's a crazy jock outside who is after us," Girl Jordan tells him.

Sid then asks a favor from him. "Can you help us? We're also looking for our friend Felix."

"You guys know Felix?"

The kids nod hurriedly.

"Can you help us?" Sid asks him. "They said they're gonna kill us!"

Sooner, a riot ensues, led by the megaphone jock earlier. "Kids in the house are going to get kicked!" He even brings the short-heighted senior who complained to him during his rally.

The kids gasp in panic.

"Okay, that's alarming," the Chinese-American teen reacts. He then leads the kids to the pantry room and shows them the dumb waiter. "Get in there. We'll save you kids in the 4th floor."

"Are you nuts?!" Girl Jordan rants.

But as they hear the wild policing teens encroaching, the kids are left without other choices.

"Dumb waiter it is!" Stella says.

With that, they cram themselves in the claustrophobic dumb waiter like clowns fitting inside a car. The teen closes the dumb waiter and presses the destination to the 4th floor. The lift easily brings them to the top. The teen then takes a juice punch and chillingly walks upstairs, tagging along with the teen hanging on each steps.

The less can be said for the five hapless kids squeezed inside a hotbox.

"If this night gets worse, I'm not throwing any party with any of you," Girl Jordan remarks.

"Is this a good time for you to talk petty?" Ronnie Anne asks her.

"I talk petty when I panic!"

The dumb waiter dings to its final destination, where the Chinese-American teen is waiting for them. "Come on!" He then takes them to Felix's room. "Get in!" As quick as possible, Lincoln, Ronnie Anne, Sid, Stella and Girl Jordan rush to the bedroom, which is smaller compared to the rooms across the halls of the floor.

(Little did they know that they have been spotted by three sneaky students, who are lurking in the shadows at the end of the hall.)

When they arrive at the hall, the kids drop to any comfy material to rest. Lincoln tumbles to woolen rug below him. Ronnie Anne and Sid drop to the bed. Stella drops to a nearby beanbag. And Girl Jordan sits on the chair.

"Sorry about what happened to you, kids," the teen says. "Felix will be here any moment. He just has…personal issues to handle."

"Personal issues?!" Lincoln vents. "He left us in his pickup truck with other kids puking over it and letting us be hunted down by bully-happy seniors. Does that count as something we can handle?!"

Right exactly that moment, Felix shows up from the door, soaked with juice punch. The kids are shocked to see him like that.

"What happened to you?" Stella asks him.

The Chinese teen hands him a towel to wipe off the juice poured on his head. "Here, dude."

As Felix wipes his face, he tells them, "Sorry guys. Any of this is not on my control." He then introduces his friend to them, "By the way, this is Henry. Cool guy. And dude, this is Lincoln, Ronnie Anne, Sid, Stella and Girl Jordan."

"Girl Jordan?" Henry clarifies.

"Yes, Girl Jordan."

"Where did you find them?"

"Just taught them games in the café. We just dropped by to get the other games. But, you know what happened." Felix continues to the gang, "Now I know you guys have many questions. First of yes, I live here. But I didn't plan the party. My stepbrother did."

The gang gasps at the first fact that Felix reveals.

Henry mouths to them, "His stepbro poured punch on Felix."

"What do you mean stepbrother?" Sid asks.

"Okay, I technically live here. But I'm an orphan. Here is the full story…"


	9. Chapter 5, Part 1: Curious Children

**Fall is awaiting its call.**

Felix finally reveals his true story. He was born to immigrant parents, who served for a rich family, the Collins. However, his parents were killed on a car accident after they both saved the family patriarch, Ted Collins. Thus, to fulfill their dying wishes, Mr. Collins adapts Felix to his family. Thus, he became Felix Ortega-Collins. Mr. and Mrs. Collins are accommodating to Felix. But their son Miles is cruel towards him, even as they both reach high school.

Eventually, Mr. Ted Collins passed away from a disease. And Mrs. Collins was left to manage his company. When the boys reached senior year, Mrs. Collins had to prioritize for Miles' education; though, she also contributed to Felix's schooling. So, Felix applied a job as a barista to handle half of his tuition. This is also to avoid Miles' spitefulness. Mrs. Collins is against Felix working, but he insists on doing so.

At this time, Mrs. Collins is away for a business trip. So, she placed Miles in charge of the house. Needless to say, he took that duty "responsibly" when he threw a college-senior after party in the mansion. He bribed his servants to not say a thing to his mom.

Consequently, the party came as a surprise for Felix as his stepbrother assumes that he would come home late at 2:00 AM, due to extending his time "playing videogames" in the café. It culminates in Felix being humiliated by Miles by spilling juice on him.

That is when Felix arrived, soaked on magenta-tinted punch. "And that is how I end up like this."

Suffice to say, the entire gang is intrigued by Felix's backstory. Ronnie Anne and Stella relate to his tragic life story. Girl Jordan is kind of moved with her jaw-dropped facial expression. Sid finds the story very affectionate. And at least for now, Lincoln finds himself resolved, now that he has knowledge about Felix's background and that he is half steps away from being a stranger.

"I never expected the barista would have such a deep backstory," Girl Jordan comments.

"All of us have deep backstories like him," Lincoln argues.

"What happened after?" Sid asks.

"Then I got on this room?" Felix clarifies.

Sid admits her mistake, "Oh right. You finished your story here."

"Speaking of which, I thought you guys are supposed to wait inside the truck."

"Well, we got scared of partying zombies who started hurling on your windshield," Ronnie Anne points out.

"Then, there's the jock who sent out a rampaging search party who are hunting down little kids sneaking in the party," Stella adds.

Henry then elaborates, "It was Josh. He was at it with his classroom ramblings."

"He's probably wasted," Felix utters. "At least you guys got here quick. Though, I don't think this is a safe place to stay."

"You mean your room?" Ronnie Anne replies.

"I mean, yes, my room. I meant the mansion really." Felix then notices their clothes soaked and stained after the five of them scourge under a rain drainage line and a dumb waiter with food stains on the metal walls. With concern, he utters, "Oh gosh, kids, you looked so weary and dirty."

"You don't say," Girl Jordan sarcastically responds. "We've been chased away from your truck, retreated to a storm drain and squeezed ourselves in a small elevator. So…yeah…"

From there, Felix feels guilty about leading the kids into this hysterical mess. He apologizes, "Sorry guys. I should have just brought you home. But I swear, this is all on me."

Henry is astonished with Felix's acknowledgment of his mistakes since he never sees it from anyone else. Because of that, he taps his friend on the shoulder.

Feeling empathy for him, Sid admits as well, "No Felix, this is kind of my fault too. I admitted that I wanted our game night to last longer."

Stella agrees alongside her that each of them contributes to what came off tonight. "Yeah, me too. We kind of got overexcited."

Feeling guilty, Girl Jordan also admits, "That goes for me."

Likewise, Ronnie Anne acknowledges her part of the bargain. "Okay, if there's one thing in life I learned, not admitting you are wrong leads you being more wrong."

That strikes a chord for Lincoln, personally, since he thinks this is a subtle nudge on his bit when he and Ronnie Anne are assigned to take care of an egg together. This causes him to hold back from admitting he also took part in encouraging the gang to tag along with a stranger. "Well…uhmmm…" he stutters, trying to get his words across. Instead, he brings up their main yet petty concern in a half-hearted manner, "Uhmmm yes, we are so musty and dirty. Escaping from those hooligan partygoers had us really exhausted and sweaty. If you can, you can help us."

The girls are rather perplexed at why Lincoln jumped from the topic, though not as much frustratingly as Ronnie Anne (in her mind).

Though he also is perplexed, Felix moves on anyway. "Okay."

Felix then offers the gang a change of shirts. He has the girls change in his walking closet, which he used mostly as a storage room for boardgames and cardgames. He then locks the bedroom door.

Lincoln takes off his orange shirt and dons a gray shirt. "I look like a loner."

"Everyone's a loner when they feel like it," Henry comments as he sets up Felix's synthesizer. "Besides, you look cool on it."

The 11-year-old does not know if he should be flattered about his supposed compliment or be suspicious. "Thanks, I guess?"

For five minutes, the girls step out of the closet with newer shirts: Ronnie Anne is on a black tee, Stella is on a red tee, Girl Jordan is wearing an orange-and-blue volleyball jersey and Sid is donning a woolen turtleneck.

"It's like I am wearing my brother's sweatshirt," Girl Jordan reacts. "Though this is better."

"Why would wear his shirts?" Ronnie Anne asks.

"Whenever it is hot and sunny, that would be my option."

Felix then speaks to all, "Okay, so I guess we'll be having game night here for the meantime. The guys outside are too rough that I didn't even know why they are inside. Miles will need some explanation. Now, we can continue our UNO games. Or we could do One Night Werewolf."

Hearing that suddenly prompts Stella to be excited. "One Night Werewolf? I always wanted to play that game!"

"Well, Werewolf it is," Felix concludes, "If I can find the case." He searches for the cardgame in this closet. But after five minutes or so, he still has not searched for it, which makes the gang antsy. "I know it is here somewhere."

"You sure you know where it is?" Stella asks him.

"If it's not here, then it's probably in the study room."

Sid points to another door, which is open, adjacent to the window. "This is one is the study room?"

Felix confirms, sticking his head out. "Yes."

"I'll help you." Sid then enters the room, which triples as a mini-library and a pet room, and opens the light in it.

"Be careful. I have my fragile stuff in there." After he arranges his stacks of boardgames in the closet, Felix joins her in his study room.

Not wanting to set a dead air in the room, Henry switches the synthesizer on and presses the keys. "Well, while they are searching for your game, why don't we jam for a while?"

"You know how to play the keyboard?" Girl Jordan asks him.

"Yeah, I used to play synthesizer for the Royal Woods College orchestra." As he presses a key, Henry asks them, "So any requests?"

"Maybe something romantic but not romantic," Stella suggests.

"Okay, how about this?" Henry starts playing the iconic first chords of "A Thousand Miles" by Vanessa Carlton. It excites both Girl Jordan and Stella that they join him in jamming along.

Back at Sid and Felix, the barista searches their game from his other shelf of boardgames. Meanwhile, the 12-year-old spots his aquarium and the pet reptile residing in it.

"Hey Felix, what's in the aquarium?" she asks.

"A newt. I call her Newtilda," he answers.

"Why did you call it Newtilda?"

"From the book _Matilda_. There's a newt in the story. So, I combined the names: newt and Matilda."

"Oh, I kinda like that! Clever wordplay."

"Yeah." Felix then gets down from the shelf.

"Do you like newts?"

"Not exactly. I like the book. It kinda had a sentimental memory on it."

"Really? Was there something in the book that changed you?"

From there, Felix gives Sid another story slice.

While that is going on, Lincoln steps out to the patio from Felix's bedroom and tries to call Lori from her phone, but he only receives her recorded messages. He attempts to dial her again, to no avail. "Dang it!"

"She's not answering?" Ronnie Anne asks.

"Yeah," Lincoln answers. "How about Bobby?"

Ronnie Anne looks back at her cellphone and sees it still dialing to Bobby's phone. "He's not answering. I thought those two are gonna call us."

"Well, they are here. So, they are probably 'not' busy and 'are' on their way home," Lincoln grunts. "Lori ruins it for us."

"Bobby too." Ronnie Anne attempts to call him again, but she slams her back to the wall. "They ruined their day for us. We shouldn't even be here."

It is refreshing for Lincoln to see Ronnie Anne upset. It has been a while that she has returned to Royal Woods from her visit during last Thanksgiving. Thus, he reaches out to her, "Hey, I am happy that you are here."

Touched, Ronnie Anne smiles back.

Just as they are in the moment, Bobby's phone answers her call.

"Hello?" Ronnie Anne replies to him. But she hears a different voice.


	10. Chapter 5, Part 2: Curious Children

**Fall is answering its call.**

It is a relief that Ronnie Anne sees her brother pick up the phone. But it is startling when she hears a different voice on his line.

"Hello?" Ronnie Anne responds.

Then, a mature woman voice replies, "_Who is this?_"

"That's my question! Who are you?! Where's my brother?!"

"_He's busy, sweetie pie._"

The call abruptly ends, much to Ronnie Anne's displeasure. She grunts heavily, feeling that her brother has breached a trust that he should not have breached. "UGHHHHH!" She dials in again and again, until she gets a response. But she gets none. "BOBBY!"

Frightened, Lincoln reaches out to her, "Ronnie Anne? Did he answer?"

She does not answer. Instead, she marches to the left side of the patio and attempts to jump off.

"Ronnie Anne, what are you doing? Where are you going?"

"Finding Bobby!" The irritated 11-year-old reaches the nearby rain pipe and slides down.

Lincoln catches up to her in climbing down on the pipe. "Wait for me, Ronnie Anne!"

"Lincoln, stay back. This is my own problem!"

He then defends, showing the same negative feeling she has, "Well Lori has not answered my call too. We're on the same page. And you need someone with you if you have to outwit those jocks after us."

Feeling his support, Ronnie Anne takes Lincoln's hand and pulls him to the teenage crowd. They crawl below to avoid detection and to blend in. It is a tussle for them since they have to deal with the stomping above them. Both of them choose to duck their heads to the pavement and find a way out of the crowd.

Ronnie Anne is speeding up. And Lincoln is trying to catch up. "Ronnie Anne, slow down!" He huffs and huffs to catch alongside her.

They find themselves crawling to an open window door that leads them to the interior living room, which is also swarmed by partygoers who are either passing out or moving like zombies.

One dude is even on the urge of puking towards Lincoln's position, but Ronnie Anne pulls him under a nearby table.

"That was close! Thanks Ronnie Anne!"

"Don't mention it."

The innocent kids then hear a wild chant that echoed to their direction. But it goes like, "Bobby! Bobby! Bobby! Bobby!"

Thinking it may be the Bobby they are looking for, both of them rush to where the ruckus comes from, without even crawling nor ducking their heads.

They find a group of partying teenagers in a circle over the chandelier foyer. In the middle of the crowd is a sando-wearing Bobby being pitted against a senior opponent.

"What the?! What's he doing?"

A college student with dark blond hair and a chiseled body announces the challenge upfront as he takes the two boy challengers by their wrist. "Ladies! Gents! We move to our final round for our ultimate frat games! We have Bobby all the way from Great Lakes City! And we have Kyle from Marshall County. And now, they'll be doing dizzy basketball. Rules are simple. These two men must spin on the chair for ten times. After which, they must grab the ball and shoot it on the ring!" The basketball ring turns out to be Carol Pingrey forming a circle with her arms.

Cheers and hollers occupy the entire lobby. Majority of the bets are on Bobby since he unintentionally showed the most enthusiasm in the games.

"First dude to shoot the ball wins!"

With the crowd getting wild, Bobby and the other guy position themselves by kneeling on the chair before they are spun around. As they do, the other teen is about to pass out, but Bobby keeps his aggression to his teeth.

After the tenth spin, Bobby quickly tackles Kyle, who drops to the crowd, and takes the ball to slams it to Carol Pingrey by pressing his body to hers.

Yet, the crowd cheers. "Bobby! Bobby! Bobby!" And both Bobby and Carol take a laugh on it.

But Ronnie Anne, who appeared in front of him as he rises, is not pleased. So does Lincoln.

Thus, they drag a still lightheaded Bobby to the nearby staircase that is out of the foyer premises. Ronnie Anne slaps him in the face repeatedly, but his wooziness gets the best of him.

"I win mama! I won the NBA…" he utters.

"Bobby, will you snap out of it?! I thought you're keeping your word! _We'll try to be back early as possible, mi culo_!"

Still woozy and unaware that Ronnie Anne is in front of him, "That's sweet."

Hurt, Ronnie Anne slaps him once more.

But Lincoln stops her. "Okay Ronnie Anne, that's not helping. Bobby, where is Lori?"

"Dolphin with Jobless…"

The two are rather perplexed on his answer.

Lincoln guesses, "Is he speaking gibberish or is he just…?"

Bobby muzzily repeats, "She's dolphin with jobless…"

"Bobby, for heaven's sake, speak some sense to your _hermana_!"

Lincoln makes another guess, based on his ramblings, "I think he's trying to say she's golfing with Chavez."

"She must be outside." Ronnie Anne looks back at Bobby to see him dozing off. "Okay, we drag Bobby outside to Lori. Then, make the both of them come to their senses."

"What about the jocks looking for us?"

"That's why we must hurry."

Speaking of which, the blond college dude who hosts the games earlier confronts them. "What do we have here? Bobby, are these your kids?"

"I am his sister," Ronnie Anne scoffs him threateningly. "Who are you?"

He charmingly introduces himself, "If you must know, I'm the guy running this place. Know the name but don't let anyone else know. Miles."

"Miles? You're Felix's stepbrother?"

"So, you blokes know Felix?" he replies like a cunning villain. "Well, glad to know that dork had brought kids illegally to my party. But I leave you to the jocks."

Fiercely, Ronnie Anne tells him, "I will not by threatened by you partygoing blockheads who let my brother to this mess."

Just at that moment, the jocks from earlier spot them. "KIDS! THERE THEY ARE!"

Lincoln and Ronnie Anne try to lift Bobby upstairs, but he is much of a dead weight now.

With no other choice, Lincoln suggests, "Ronnie Anne, we have to go!"

"No! I can't leave Bobby!"

"We'll return for Bobby! We need to save ourselves first."

Hopeless and frantic, Ronnie Anne grumblingly leaves Bobby to the staircase, and they go into hiding. Both of them retreat to an open bathroom. Lincoln locks the door, and the two take their breaths for a while. The latter is briefly relived from getting away from the claustrophobic party crowd, "That was wild. I swear I'll never go to a party like that in my life."

However, Ronnie Anne is more than upset from what is happening.

"Ronnie Anne?"

She becomes silent, leaning her back to the bathroom wall.

Lincoln takes her time to absorb everything. It is a brief silent moment, comprised of her sullen expression. But he eventually says to her, "Sorry about Bobby."

"I never seen him like that. That is not him," she utters.

He pats her shoulder to comfort her.

Ronnie Anne tries not to break into tears in front of him. She could only lean her head to Lincoln's shoulder in this time of confusion.

"I fear about Lori too."

Having shared his sentiments, Ronnie Anne embraces Lincoln. Likewise, he embraces her back to comfort her more. Never has there been a relevant period for the two friends to find comfort with each other over their older siblings' growth than now.

Eventually, Lincoln encourages her. "We'll get Bobby. But we have to get out of here."

Inconveniently, some kids are banging on the door. Thus, both of them take the air vents system.

Back at Felix's room, Felix tells another lifestory to Sid, "I had this niece in Great Lakes as well. Her name is Lucia. Before I had the barista gig, my aunt would always call me to take care of her. So, in days when I had no classes, I'd fill in for her. She was really energetic and quirky and happy. Even though they are poor, she would always bring a smile to us. Then, I would always read _Matilda_ to her. She loves reading books. So, she would always relate to the girl hero who loves books because she is always imaginative."

"Is your niece talkative?" Sid asks him.

"Sort of."

"She kind of reminds me of my sister Adelaide. She would be a sass bucket all the time. But she likes it. She likes projecting her imagination all over the place. But that's how she likes it."

"Must be hard work being the older sister."

"Totally. But it is fun being the elder one."

"Yeah…" Felix is simply passive over that fact.

Sid becomes aware of it. So, she quickly acknowledges her mistake. "Oh sorry, if I offend you."

"It's cool. I'm used to it. The runt of the litter."

Sid then pats him on the shoulder. "Hey, you're cool. You're like a cool brother that I only realize now that I actually need."

Felix smiles tenderly at her compliment. "You're cool too."

Hearing that makes Sid's heart get warmer.

Jumping to Stella, Girl Jordan and Henry, the three are still jamming to any random song they have in mind. This time, they are singing "Michael in the Bathroom" from _Be More Chill_.

_I'm just Michael who you don't know_

_Michael flying solo_

_Michael in the bathroom by himself_

The song seems timely as Lincoln and Ronnie Anne burst in from the air vents towards Felix's bed. Everyone gasps.

"Lincoln! Ronnie Anne! What are you guys doing in there?"

"Long story, we escaped from the 2nd floor bathroom when the jocks nearly caught up to us," Lincoln tells them.

"The bathroom?" Henry wonders. Then, he segues to quipping about it with the synthesizer.

_I'm just Lincoln who you don't know_

_With RA flying solo_

_They are in the bathroom by themselves_

"Nothing happened guys! Swear," Lincoln assures them.

"But how did you guys got there?" Girl Jordan asks.

Since Ronnie Anne does not want to bring it up herself, Lincoln tells, "Long story, we looked for Bobby. But we saw Miles."

"You guys saw Miles?" Felix asks as he and Sid emerge out of the study room.

"Oh he's bad news. I don't want to even speak about him."

Looking at how tired and emotional the two were, Stella, Sid, Girl Jordan, Felix and Henry realized how much the unplanned night took a toll on them personally. In that way, Felix tries to think of an alternative to playing boardgames. So, he suggests this: "So, anyone who likes stargazing? I know a spot." Everyone agrees to his suggestion.


	11. Chapter 6, Part 1: Lenient Leads

**Fall is another hunting season.**

At that point, Lincoln relays everything to his teacher, Ms. Johnson, about what transpired from the scandal. He started from point A to point B in a cleanly manner. "And that's how we end up as Public Enemy #1."

"I see," his teacher remarks, trying to absorb the details that her pupil gave her. "I get it why this is out of your control. And people could be judgmental about stuff like this. But Lincoln, can you be honest and tell me there's nothing more you and your friends are hiding?"

Feeling hurt on her assuming that he is not being transparent enough, Lincoln takes it offensively, "Ms. Johnson, what more you want?! I gave you everything, just to defend me and my friends from a thing we never did! What more do you need?!" He pants after nearly venting.

Ms. Johnson pats him on the back to calm himself down. "So sorry about that Lincoln. I never meant to lead you that way."

"No Ms. Johnson. I am the one who should apologize," Lincoln acknowledges as he pants. "I never meant for that outburst."

"It's okay, my child. I just need to know how to defend you, kids. I trust you that any of you did nothing wrong. But after this, you are about to speak in front of your parents and your friends' parents. And I hope in any decision to be made there, I am confident you will tell the truth."

Lincoln nods his head.

After that, Ms. Johnson takes some papers and leads Lincoln to the main meeting room. As she opens the door, he sees the hall is set up like any teacher meeting, unlike what he imagines as a court. On one column, his folks, the other folks (Ronnie Anne's mom Maria, Sid's mom and dad, Stella's mom and Girl Jordan's dad), Principal Huggins, Principal Rivers and the school superintendent are seated. While on the other column, Ronnie Anne, Sid, Stella, Girl Jordan, Felix, Henry and Ralph are seated accordingly (only with a chair separating the kids and the teens). Ms. Johnson sits on that chair.

A fellow teacher conducts the hearing, "This meeting will come into session. May we call the first witness to this case?"

At her summoning, a blonde high school student steps to the podium and speaks up, "Friday night, 11:25 PM, I saw Felix and Henry take five kids out of Felix's room. They illegally take kids in an exclusive HS senior/college student's party. And they escape to a forested part of the venue. We try to stop the three, but they insist. Ralph was the one being defensive."

Hearing her testimony makes the gentle giant Ralph duck his head to the table to hide. It does not help since the adults take offense at him.

"Ralph, any statement?" the teacher asks.

With that, Ralph gets up from his seat to testify his case. This is one of the many cases he dealt with.

* * *

**Fall is another waiting season.**

Ralph is an African-American high school senior student, who is quite popular with his peers. Though he was mostly seen as a studious pupil who specializes in social sciences, he has secret vices that resulted in him getting detention multiple times. His teachers take scrutiny on his unorthodox behavior, and some of the students fear him.

Lately, he vowed to fix his behavior and stay away from his vices. But that is broken when his admirer Joan pleads to chaperone her and her friends to the seniors' after party. While they are having fun, Ralph mostly stays on the side and nearly gets intoxicated.

But back at that Friday night party, Felix assists the crew on taking them to the mansion's hidden stargazing spot on a concrete flat roof portion of the top. That is the part where their cable dishes are fixed. First goes Girl Jordan, then Stella, then Sid and Ronnie Anne. The girls cross the catwalk going to the spot. Lincoln stays behind at the patio to ensure the girls crawl safe, while he also keeps an eye on what the boys are doing back in Felix's room. Needless to say, they are just bringing snacks and cardgames with them.

Meanwhile, as the girls settle on the top, they are able to get a scenic view of the night sky as the house in front of them covers the busy party below and beyond. Their position also allows the noise and music to be blocked. Though, they still get a partial view below after seeing some partygoers on the sides.

"Kind of peaceful up here," Stella remarks. "Even the sky is clear."

"I could get used to this," Girl Jordan adds. "Not every time it is peaceful at home. I mean not peaceful, like destructive or anything. Just noisy."

"Who's the one noisy at home?"

"Everyone in the family, except me. It only takes a while when I get to be the noisiest."

"Nah, I prefer quiet. Otherwise, I would block the noise with music."

"Ironic that noise blocks another noise."

Stella chuckles at that fact.

Ronnie Anne pulls out five pairs of handkerchief for the gang to sit on. As they place them on the ground, Sid observes her best friend still painting a big frown on her face. "Ronnie Anne, anything bothering you?"

Girl Jordan takes notice as well, "Girl, something wrong?" She then faces Sid, "What's up with her?"

"She won't tell. She's like this when she crashed from that air vent," Sid explains. "Maybe take her time to breathe."

"I'll say. It was a rather long night for us, and I'm about to miss my curfew," Stella says, "My mom would probably text me at this hour." On a timely note, she feels her phone buzzing. "Yep. That's definitely her."

"We got what we gave," Girl Jordan says. "But I pretty much prefer chilling out here. Gets off the stress from reality."

"You get stressed?"

"Well, yeah. Being one of the most popular kids in our class does not come off as easy, you know?"

"What's so stressful about that?"

"I don't want to just be the girl who throws parties every month. I want to be the one who loves science. Well, biology in particular."

"You like biology?" Sid asks her.

"So much. Not just on the fact that I love animals that I need to force myself to love biology. I mean I really want to study how some animals came to be. And I love observing them up close."

"Then you will definitely love my family. My mom is a zoologist. And I have a pet lizard named Meatball. Though Ronnie Anne does not like him. But it is kind of funny of how Ronnie Anne reacts seeing him. You should have seen her face."

Secretly, Ronnie Anne is chuckling when Sid shares that.

"By the way, Felix has a pet newt. It looked so cool."

"Really? You seemed to be a lizard person?"

"It's just a coincidence."

Sid then reaches out to Stella, "How about you, Stella?"

"I'm more of a rabbit person. Don't know. I don't mind liking other animals, not just sticking to one."

"And for Ronnie Anne, I'm thinking of a coyote."

Ronnie Anne feels a little bit triggered. "Why a coyote?"

"Just looking back at you in school. You sneak towards other kids like a coyote. Or a chupacabra."

"I think I might take the chupacabra any day," Ronnie Anne sarcastically replies. "If you would ask me, then my answer would be a penguin."

"Hmmm that's new," Girl Jordan replies.

Abruptly, Lincoln joins them. "Hey guys!"

"Hey Link!" they reply back to him chillingly.

"What do we have here?" he asks.

"We're just talking if we like any particular animal," Stella tells him. "And we just found out that Sid is a lizard girl."

"Hey!" Sid playfully reacts. "I'm also a pigeon girl too. Call me 'the pigeon whisperer'."

"Yeah, I observe the first time I met Sid, pigeons were just flocking around her," Lincoln remarks. He sits beside Stella at the farthest right. On his view, the stars appear clearer.

"You know, I think this is a good time when we can share anything thoughtful," Stella suggests.

"Like what?" Sid asks.

"Anything. Funny stories, some realizations, hidden feelings," Stella elaborates, but snickers, "Maybe not so much for the latter."

Ronnie Anne suddenly shares to them, "You know what I realized. This night made me realize that my brother is truly helpless."

"Beg your pardon, Ronnie Anne?" Girl Jordan asks.

"Sorry, I just have to get this out of my system." Ronnie Anne begins to vent. "You know how startling it is to see the brother that you always count on started to act differently and recklessly in front of you. Sorry. Bobby just looked like a dead weight when Lincoln and I saw him. He was so woozy that he did not even notice me, no matter how much I tried to wake him up. I'll tell you, as soon as we get back to Royal Woods, it would take a long time for me to regain his trust. I just hate to see him like this." She wants to break into tears, but she slams her fists instead. Ronnie Anne huffs harder and harder.

But Sid calms her down, pressing her hand on her best friend's shoulders. "Ronnie Anne, it's okay…"

Sooner, Ronnie Anne inhales slowly to calm herself.

"Well, we can all agree we had tough times tonight," Stella says, to which everyone agrees, most especially Lincoln.


	12. Chapter 6, Part 2: Lenient Leads

**Fall is another evening hour.**

The hear session gets tense featuring the kids, their worried parents, their unwanted teenage subordinates and their hostile school superiors. It was rather turned into a guilt session, where each witness throws out his or her biases against Felix, Henry and Ralph. The kids were rather stunned at the display of hatred that their peers are expressing. They only learned about those facts in real time. So, the revelations by the teenage witnesses came off as rumors for Ronnie Anne, Sid, Stella and Girl Jordan. But for Lincoln, he still raised the alarm about the triad but tries to hide it.

At this moment, Felix gets the opportunity to defend himself with a prepared statement.

Suddenly, Lincoln receives a text from Lucy: "_Lincoln, Davidson was not at the party. Leni's friend said so. What now?_"

He stealthily texts back, "_Check that guy out. He must have a scoop._"

When Lucy receives the text, the rest of the Loud sisters rethink their strategy. They are now huddled in the library as the case hearing goes on.

"Check out Davidson?!" Lola berates. "We already got him. And he got nothing."

Leni then clarifies, "But he's not nothing. He's just not at that party, my friend Jackie says."

"Lincoln thinks he might have something," Lana deduces.

"Well, he wrote something in the school paper," Lynn surmises.

But Lisa rebukes her, "Yes, which is why we're investigating him, genius."

"But why Davidson?" Luna wonders, "He only wrote in the opinion page, not in the news page."

"So why would he be in the room with Mrs. Johnson and be assigned to cover the story?" Luan wonders. "Lincoln's right. There must be a link. Pun intended."

"Well, what should we do?" Lynn Jr. asks them.

They all try to brainstorm for ideas for their next step to investigate their case. With "Davidson" as their only lead, they are pretty much at a dead end for possible clues.

So, Luna formulates an unconventional yet logical plan. "I think I might have an idea. But we have to do it all at once."

Generally, Luna's plan consists of sneaking inside the school publication room when empty. The room contains ten students. Luckily, the editor-in-chief and Davidson are in there.

Luan goes first and knocks on the door. "Guys, I just have a scoop for you! The theatre club is holding their annual performance art flash mob down the hall!"

One female contributor speculates, "Since when does the theatre club hold a flash mob…?"

But Luan drags her immediately. "No time to explain! We need this covered now!"

Following the both of them are two other contributors who take their SLR cameras and their phones to capture the story. The news is indeed true as Benny and the rest of the theatre club perform a provocative performance under the theme "Injustice". Lucy and the Morticians Club cooperate, using their creepiness to force the students to watch them perform.

Only seven people remain in the room.

Thankfully, Luna riffs her guitar from the adjacent room to distract them. She jams with her band, using the opening chords of "Barracuda" by Heart. And gleefully, Sam, Sully and Mazzy are able to keep up with the urgency as they play along.

However, spotting from the outside window and hanging on a rope, Lana contacts Luna through radio, "Luna, the room has sound blockers on the wall."

"No problem," Luna boasts. She swiftly ups her amp to eleven. And BOOM!

Their sonic jam crashes to the other room, now getting the attention of the school paper staff.

"Can you check the other side?!" the feature writer commands the junior writer, to which he begrudgingly does so.

The latter knocks on the door of the band room. "Excuse me?! Excuse me?! We are trying to work!"

Luna immediately opens the door and drags him in. "Work this out, dude!" She continues on with the jam, with their beat getting loud and more contagious. She later on drags the senior illustrator, the junior and the other news writer inside. Needless to say, four of the school paper staff jam along, leaving the feature writer and two female lifestyle writers in the room.

So, Lana sounds off a faux fart noise through a prop balloon. The sound is so loud that the girls immediately heard it and suspect the feature writer. Lana sounds it off once more, making the girls glare at him.

"What?" he utters.

Finally, Lana blasts the balloon, ticking off the girls this time and walking out of the room.

"Gross!"

"What?! What did I wrong?" The writer follows them out, leaving the room unattended.

This gives a clearing for Lana and Lola to enter the room. Lana gets lowered and opens the window. She then spits a chewing gum on the room's only security cam. Lola barges in with style by reenacting Ethan Hunt in the first _Mission: Impossible_ movie and bursting from the vents. But she just hangs there, once she enters the room.

"You don't need to be that stealthy," Lana tells her sarcastically.

"Hey, if we need to act like spies, we have to be like spies," Lola says to her. "Now can you let me down here?"

Lana instead cuts off her, landing Lola to her face on the carpeted floor.

"Ouch! Don't do that, Lana. You'll ruin my style."

"Quiet. The teens might hear us from the other side. Now, where's the one thing that Lincoln tells us to find?"

Lisa contacts them through their earpiece. "Get straight from your yapping and get yourselves working to find the scoop."

Lana comes across a bulletin board of newspaper clippings, handwritten accounts and photos of various school events. She tries to find any paraphernalia relating to the case, but spots Lola using the Mac computer. "Lola, there's no time to browse through your social media feed!"

"I am not browsing through my social feed. I am just finding out if the school is talking about my theater debut." She then shifts the monitor to Lana as proof.

Lana then walks to her, chastising her, "Lola, stop hacking someone's Facebook."

"I'm not," Lola defends. "I'm browsing through somebody else's Facebook. It's different."

Suddenly, a beep is heard on the Mac. They check out to see a message pop up from a guy named "Donnie Davidson".

"Wait, is this the guy we're looking for?" Lola asks. She reads the message: "_Dude, found a solid scoop from Felix. His step brother. He liked to share his testimony but he wants to be anonymous. Got him now at Burpin' Burger._" "What in the world are they doing?"

Lola navigates the computer screen and locates a folder that is labelled "Loud scandal". There, the twins see a lot of documents that lead up to the news that placed Lincoln and his friends in shame.

"We got the bomb," Lola utters. She then contacts Lisa, "Lisa, can you hack into a computer and get some files?"

Lisa then "Lola, for your basic information, I am a scientist, not a computer programmer. But for your concession, older sisters, spare me sometime."

"Gotcha!" Lynn replies, hiding on the side of the lockers. She spots someone returning to the room. It is the feature writer. So, she takes out a slingshot and targets him. "Who was that?!" Annoyed, Lynn Jr. gives chase to the guy.

As for Lisa, she falls from the air vents to the room where the twins are. "Not a good idea," she fuzzily says as she gets up.

"I thought you are going to hack through the computers," Lola complains.

"I told you I am not a computer programmer. I invent mechanisms through computers, but I do not hack into computers," Lisa clarifies. "But you could use this." She then pulls out a USB drive that they could use.

Lola takes it and slots it in the Macbook to copy the files. It does not take a minute to copy the entire folder. However, at that second, the doorknob twists, and the editor-in-chief enters back to the room. He returns to his chair nonchalantly and browses his computer.

Thankfully, the little siblings clear up the room and leave no trace. However, they are each in their hiding places: Lana hides under the tables leaning on the left-side wall, Lola hides inside a file cabinet and Lisa returns to the air vent tube, stretching her limbs to avoid falling. And they ensure to close the window.

The editor-in-chief suddenly notices the message of Donnie; however, it is labelled as "seen". He recalls that he never seen the message before. Yet, he is urged by his scoop, prompting him to storm out of the room.

Lisa contacts the rest of the sisters, "Code red sisters, red flag from the room. Block sharp-dressed teen." Yet, after learning that she is still preventing from falling, Lisa drops to the floor. "Wah!"

The twins get out of their hiding places, carrying Lisa with them.

"Guys, to Vanzilla now!" Lola contacts them through radio.

Lana, Lola and Lisa escape from the window and to the parking lot. Luan and Lucy sneak away from their performance via a grand exit. Luna also escapes her jamming sessions by pretending to jump off the window, eventually landing on a bush. Lynn Jr. catches up after she loses the feature writer in the hallway. Gladly, Leni waits by the van.

"LENI, DRIVE!" Lynn tells her.

"What's such a hurry?" she asks.

"HIM!" Lynn Jr. points to the feature writer, who nearly gets on their tail with spotting the van.

"With pleasure." Leni steps on the brake and speeds the van out of the school compound. She is able to speed past the cars in front of her and evade each one, as if she is a racer. She slows down though as the school is far away from them.

"So, where to now?" she asks her young sisters.

"Burpin' Burger," Lana says. "We have an appointment to fulfill."

With that, the girls speed their way to that burger joint to intercept the source that led Lincoln and his girl friends to the embarrassment. More things will be revealed.


	13. Chapter 7, Part 1: Deceitful Drama

**Fall is a step ahead.**

Back on that Friday night, Felix and Henry catch up with the kids on the stargazing platform. "Hey guys!" they greet them.

"Hi!" they greet back with a little adamancy.

Felix brings a blanket to sit on, while Henry carries the snacks.

"Here," Felix hands the blanket over to them. "Something to lay your back over. We use to bring lawn chairs here and also a telescope. But after the fiasco…it's a long story."

Stella and Girl Jordan lay the polyester sheet to the concrete and pat away the dust.

"So, we just lay on the blanket and watch the sky?" Ronnie Anne asks.

"Watch the stars," Felix elaborates for her.

"Oh, I never thought of it that way," she says.

"Really? Never stargazed before?"

"I heard of stargazing being a pastime. But I live in the city right now. So never thought about it once," Ronnie Anne tells as she lies down on the blanket.

With the seven of the anti-partygoers now nestled on the blanket under the stars, they try to find any of their signs on the sky. However, they only find a thick blanket of darkness.

"Too bad there are clouds in the sky," Stella says.

"I would sometimes find stars from my house," Lincoln shares. "Well, thanks to my sister Lisa. She let me use her telescope. It was amazing to spot any shooting stars on the sky."

"Shooting stars?" Sid gasps. "I always wanted to spot one and hopefully make a wish."

"Sid, you know shooting stars don't actually fulfill wishes, do you?" Ronnie Anne reacts.

"I know. I just thought it would be fun to think if it did," Sid surmises.

"And if it did?"

"I would wish that I would meet Twelve is Midnight in person! Or maybe some other weirdly amazing thing, like watching a real life _March of the Penguin_s, or spotting a unicorn, or world peace! The last one, I might not sure."

"Too hyper, aren't we?"

"Well, yeah! I can't wait to see my first shooting star."

Henry advises her, "Just a tip, keep looking 360 degrees if you want to catch a shooting star. They really pop out by surprise."

"Good!" Sid then squints her eyes, hunting for any possible shooting star.

As for the rest, the sky gets more blanketed with thin clouds that filter the stars. Lincoln tries his best to identify the stars in the sky, but that chore seems useless now.

"So guys, seen any constellations so far?" Felix asks them.

"Nah," the girls answer.

"If only the sky is clear," Stella says.

"Yeah, I don't think so," Girl Jordan utters. "The lights on the party is blinding the stars. I always have that in my house parties."

"I got an idea," Henry suggests, "Let's play 'never have I ever'."

The girls are excited with that idea. "Okay! Go!"

"What's the catch?" Ronnie Anne asks.

Henry formulates, "Okay, first one who has all their fingers down gets to ask an embarrassing question to anyone of us. And also have my two tickets to an escape room. Deal?"

"That sounds like a 'truth or truth' to me," Girl Jordan notes. "We're in." The girls agree.

"DEAL!" Ronnie Anne and Sid exclaim.

Everyone now has his or her fingers raised.

Henry hits them with the first question: "Never have I ever actually laughed out loud when typing 'LOL'."

"Never have I ever sung karaoke."

"Never have I ever had a nightmare about zombies chasing me."

"Never have I ever tried out to be an extra in a movie."

"Never have I ever scared myself in a mirror."

"Never have I ever sat in the shower."

"Never have I ever watched the 'Gangnam Style' music video."

"Never have I ever sang in the shower."

"Never have I ever played Candy Crush."

"Never have I ever looked out the car's passenger seat window and imagined it was a scene from a music video."

Afterwards, Henry updates the gang on their scores. "So, who got the most?"

In the end, it is Stella that had the most fingers down, with just one sticking out. "Me," she confirms. Meanwhile, it is both Sid and Lincoln who are tied with the least fingers down with just two.

"Okay, last question to crown the winner," Henry says. "Okay, never have I ever licked a frozen pole, _Christmas Story_-style."

Stella then lowers her finger, immediately winning the game. "Yes!"

"Alright, Stella's the winner!" Henry then hands her over the two escape room passes and gives her the floor to ask anyone an embarrassing question.

"Okay, Lincoln…"

Lincoln gasps when he hears his friend calling him out.

"Tell us, who is in your right now?"

His heart beats when she corners him with that hot-seat question. His throat dries up as he tries to compose himself. "My heart? How uhhhh…ahhhh…why would I answer that?"

"Come on, it's just a crush she's asking," Felix encourages him.

It does not help that the girls are teasing him alongside, except for Ronnie Anne.

Finally, he succumbs to answering, "Never have I…"

From there, the gang goes through more sessions of "never have I ever" with various cases of successes. Sometimes, Ronnie Anne would be the winner. Other times, Felix would be. Yet generally, the gang wastes no time on sharing each other's lives while munching on snacks through the game and just staring at the clouding night sky.

Suddenly, a thunder rolls from the far side of their location. The gang ease their heads to spot heavy clouds rolling towards their direction.

"Is it gonna rain?" Stella wonders.

"It's just thunder and lightning," Henry says. "Happens every time here."

Girl Jordan retorts, "I think the better question is when we will get back if it starts to rain."

"Wanna go back?" Felix asks her.

"Nah, just hope it doesn't rain," Girl Jordan tells him.

But Sid abruptly tells them, "I think I need to use the bathroom."

"Yeah," Felix responds. He then gets up and goes first to lead Sid to the appropriate quarters. However, as he passes down through the catwalk to his patio, Felix spots three teen couples having barged in his bedroom, making out inside and getting on the next base. He immediately closes his eyes, freaks out and gestures Sid to go back.

"Why? Is something wrong in your room?" Sid asks.

"You shouldn't know," Felix tells her.

With a slight suspicion, Sid follows otherwise. "But I really need to go."

"Let's find another way."

The thunder roars louder as the storm clouds encroach closer.

"It really is the best time to go inside," Lincoln and Ronnie Anne encourage them in unison, much to their shock.

"We have to take the other way," Felix replies to them. "Henry, check the other way." For that, Felix peeks the situation below them to see the partygoers clogging the passage. Not helping is that the bullying seniors are swarming below. "Can't go down from here."

Henry, meanwhile, climbs on the taller portions of the roof and scans the situation on the other side. Luckily, that area is filled with gardening equipment and surrounded by a metal fence. Thus, no other partygoer has access to the area yet. "Coast is clear here!"

"Alright everyone, follow me. And don't fold the blanket."

"Why?" Ronnie Anne asks.

Nevertheless, they leave it. Afterwards, Felix and Henry pick it up and stretch it to the longest measurement. Henry retrieves a short rope and tries to do a tighter knot, joining the rope and the blanket. "Dude, do you know how to knot?"

"I do," Lincoln says. He first does a monkey's fist knot on the end of the blanket and securely ties to the nylon rope around it.

After the boys throw the blanket down, Felix instructs the girls, "Girls, get down and use the blanket."

"I am not sure if that is safe," Girl Jordan expresses her doubts. But when another thunder strikes, she changes her mind, "On the other hand, good."

Girl Jordan gets down first, next Stella, then Sid and finally Ronnie Anne.

"Lincoln, go!"

With no hesitation, Lincoln catches up with the rest, clutching his fists to the tied blanket. He arrives safely down.

It is Henry to go down from the roof. However, he grips on the blanket so much that the rope becomes loose, and the blanket is dragged down with him. He hits on the ground by the bum.

Felix checks them. "Are you okay, Henry?"

"Yeah, just a bump," Henry replies.

"Henry, here's the keys out. Take the kids to the bungalow. They'll be safe there. I'll meet you guys there," he shouts to him.

"What are you gonna do?" Ronnie Anne asks him.

"There's something I have to do first. Go!" Felix then walks back to the roof platform and back to his bedroom.

Following his instructions, Felix leads the gang to the forested part of their estate, right behind the mansion. They are almost out of the premises where the party takes place, just as the drizzle falls. With that, they cover their heads with the blanket.

Henry spots the bungalow that they race for it. However, two brazen college guys (one blond and one with a mullet), who are too intoxicated at this point, confronts the group face-to-face.

"Dude, it's the little people," the blond guy tells his friend.

"Guys, we're just passing through," Henry pleads to them. "Now, if you may…"

But the mullet guy stops him before he can finish. "Woah dude, we're not talking about you. We're talking about the pipsqueak trespassers you smuggled into the party."

"We mean no harm," Henry tries to intervene.

But the guys push him to the ground.

"HENRY!" the kids gasp.

With them cornered, the college guys aim to capture them. "Let's finish the job!"

"AHHHHHHHHHHH!"

However, another guy in African-American descent tackles the two intoxicated hoodlums, defending the gang. He pushes their heads to the ground. "Leave the kids alone or else!" He smudges their heads to the grass even more, ensuring they catch his message.

After which, the two college dudes get up and run away from them, wobbling and struggling from their intoxication.

"You kids alright?" the teen asks, helping Henry up.

"Yeah, just a scratch, dude," Henry assures. Recognizing the guy who saved them, he introduces him to the kids, "Guys, this is Ralph. We were lab partners. Ralph, this is Stella, Girl Jordan, Lincoln, Ronnie Anne and Stella."

"Why are these kids here?" Ralph asks.

"It's a long, complicated story."

"We were supposed to meet with Felix in the bungalow," Sid tells him.

"Felix brought you here?"

"Unfortunately," Lincoln clarifies.

Just then, the rain pours.

"There's still space in the bungalow," Ralph tells them as he leads them to shelter.


	14. Chapter 7, Part 2: Deceitful Drama

**Fall is a leap back.**

In uncertain times, it is great to find company in the unlikeliest places. For Lincoln, Ronnie Anne, Sid, Stella and Girl Jordan, they find it on three teenagers who protected them in the wretched college party. With Ralph now being included in the pack, he welcomes them to the bungalow where few partygoers doze off, either intoxicated or plain tired.

"Thanks for rescuing us," Stella tells him.

"It's nothing," Ralph replies as he leads the guys inside. "Those guys are just dangerous that I have to let them keep away from you."

"What's their deal anyway that they have against us?" Girl Jordan asks.

Ralph then explains, "It's pretty petty. Last time, one of the seniors is forced to babysit a kid during one of the parties. He wants to come to the party so much that he had to bring that kid there. And chaos came. The kid documented the party on his social media feed that other kids snuck out and joined him. Then there, the seniors and the college dudes are pretty harsh on smaller kids."

"How about their parents?" Stella asks again.

"The kids, both the little ones and the older ones, pin the blame on other students. Those who did not even came to the party."

"How were they able to do that?" Girl Jordan queries him.

"Control. They have control. That rich snob Miles has connections from different colleges around Royal Woods' network. Perhaps even Michigan. So, whatever rich boy party he has, he can hide it from his parent's back."

"And how do you know this?" Lincoln asks him.

"Because I'm a victim." When Ralph presses him with that fact, the gang is stunned that their new friend had become a victim of profiling and blaming from the privileged. "That homie knows me ever since middle school. He always butts heads on me, for some unexplained reason. But he loves the thrill of it. That's why I met Felix and this dude right here, since they always disliked his guts. I try to move away from him. But my…friend Joan wants me to bring her here."

Right on time, she calls out for his name when she exits the mansion proper. "Ralph! Ralph! Ralph, my love!"

Even though her pleading is faintly soft, Ralph still recognizes it. "Hide!"

The gang ducks their heads and conceals themselves from the other partygoers laid down. The bungalow has fixed benches on it. So, they take advantage of it and hide their faces. Stella peeks from outside to see Joan and her flamboyant friends looking for her hunk. "Ralphie! Ralphie-Ralph!"

"Hate being called that," he utters.

"Why did she dragged you here when you don't want to?" Henry asks.

"It's complicated, man. Have no choice or else she'll kick me off the science project."

"Brave dude, dude."

They see her rather wobbly. Same goes for her friends as one is holding a champagne glass and another is taking a bottle of white wine with her. It is unbelievable for the youngsters to see a group of old teenagers act like zombies when they are ecstatic to party. Or in some case, they speak in eloquent English and spout out profound philosophy out of their mouths. They keep doing this under the thundering skies.

"Sorry if you have to see this, kids," Ralph acknowledges to them.

"I've seen worse," Ronnie Anne responds, referencing a while ago.

Lincoln pats her shoulder to console her. She finds it comforting.

Right on time, Felix arrives in the bungalow with a flashlight, the mat from earlier, a bag of cheese puffs and a fish bowl. He whispers, "Guys, I'm here."

"Felix!" the seven of them utter softly.

The former recognizes an old friend. "Ralph, what are you doing here?"

"Big mistake, thanks to her," he answers, pointing at an intoxicated Joan outside.

Felix squints his eyes to see three teenage girls and three of their flamboyant peers desperately searching for Ralph while acting less sober. "Are you two even an item?" he asks.

"She thinks we are," Ralph says. "I don't."

"Ouch," Girl Jordan remarks before she yawns.

"Feel a little sleepy, huh?" Henry tells her.

"It's been a long night dude. So yeah," she replies.

Felix could take the option of laying down the mat inside for them to relax on. But the gang hears the other kids snoring aloud. "Should we take this outside?"

"But Ralph's girl is still outside," Sid tells him.

"Right after. She'll get inside eventually."

"How would you know?" Ronnie Anne asks.

Felix shares, "Miles keeps throwing these parties at the mansion a lot of times. On the times when I was home, I have to stay in my room, watch others have their fun and spot some dead weight kids outside being dragged inside."

"Eesh, that's bad," Henry reacts, "You look outside and you thought that you are on _Walking Dead_."

"Could be 'cause you already got the Glenn look," Girl Jordan quips.

"Yeah, that never gets old," Henry sarcastically jokes.

As the thunder keeps rolling over the party, still active as a light drizzle falls on Royal Woods, it takes about twenty minutes for Joan to fall on the ground, desperate and lifeless. Her friends try to pull her up, to no avail. But as the drizzle gets heavier, they drag her inside the mansion. One flamboyant friend simply carries his tonic mix.

"Let's go," Felix gives the signal for the gang to carry on and move outside. He takes them to an absolute lakeshore location where the edge of the lake touches the ground like ocean waves. There is a steep but short hill on the right that it is impossible for the partygoers to locate them. Finding the spot secure, the eight of them place the mat on the grass and lie on it. Luckily, their view has several stars visible on the sky, with the right portion filled with storm clouds. It is that heaven-sent opportunity that they need now.

"This is kind of beautiful," Ronnie Anne says relaxingly. "On our side, there are stars. The other, there is a thunderstorm."

"Isn't it dangerous for that storm to come here?" Stella asks.

"Relax," Henry tells her. "There is a storm here. But the lightning don't just strike immediately below us. Well, unless you carry metal objects with you."

The girls exclaim when they are aware they have earrings, particularly Girl Jordan and Sid.

"Relax. There's no lightning strike on this place."

They then sigh in relief.

Felix then lays his stuff to the mat to lay it firm on the ground.

Sid asks about the fish bowl, "What's the fish bowl for?"

"Oh, Newtilda is in there," he answers.

"Really?!" Sid exclaims in delight as Felix turns on his flashlight to see a safe Newtilda floating. She taps on the glass, seeing how it will react.

"Why you brought him here?" Ronnie Anne asks.

"A jerk almost puked in his aquarium. But I saved him, though not my room."

"Sorry about that," Sid tells him.

"It's a lot to get used to. It just sucks that your stepbrother's antics has you also involved. But what else can I do?"

Sid pats him on the back to try to comfort it. Needless to say, it is what he needs.

With the eight of them now rested on the mat, they try to find a way to pass the time and make themselves relaxed over their nearly ruined night.

Girl Jordan then suggests, "Okay guys, I've been wrapping this around my head. So, let's play who has the most, the weirdest thing about them. Or anything that happened before."

"So, we share…secrets? Like that?" Ronnie Anne clarifies her.

"Sort of," Girl Jordan answers. "Whoever has the weirdest secret about themselves wins. What do you say?"

"Wins what?" Henry asks.

"Bragging rights?"

Some of them simply chuckles at that tidbit.

But Girl Jordan further elaborates, "Okay, okay, it's on me. Right after this night. Promise."

"Okay, we're in," Henry replies.

"Better not pressure me into spilling out oddities," Ralph tells them.

"Just the weirdest loses but wins. At least that's a twofer," Girl Jordan clarifies. "Okay?"

The entire gang accepts her challenge.

For that, she goes first in admitting something weird about her. "Okay first, I love polar bears. But I got disappointed when I first saw them on a zoo."

While the others chuckle at that, Henry taunts her, "That doesn't seem weird. I only know about warthogs from _Lion King_. But I never knew they look that ugly in real life."

"Okay…" she reacts laughingly. "Uhmm, whoever has their turn also gets to call the next person to confess. So, this time, it's Henry."

"Alright then," Henry responds gleefully. "I am so scared of mirrors."

"Dude, you use mirrors for your hair gel," Felix responds, "How is that possible?"

"Bro, I hurry gelling my hair. I always thought that a ghost would appear behind me. It's a mistake for watching _The Ring_ by myself."

"Okay, who's next?" Stella asks.

"Let's try Sid next," Henry suggests.

Sid willingly, albeit nervously, takes her turn, "Okay. I made this documentary when I was a 5-years-old. It was called 'Call of the Pigeons'. It was me just catching this rare pink-feathered pigeon that kept tapping my bedroom window every Tuesday. I just thought it was a rare species, so I film myself tracking it down."

The rest are rather amazed of how peculiarly detailed that hidden fact was from Sid.

"That's hard to top," Ralph reacts.

"How come you never shared that to me?" Ronnie Anne asks her.

"The camerawork ain't good," Sid shares. "You won't like it being too shaky."

Ronnie Anne then nods her head.

From there, it becomes a sharing session for the eight to alleviate their feelings of the night and end it happily.

**Ralph:** "I was on laughing gas till I got home that I admit I had a crush on my piano teacher."

**Ronnie Anne:** "I had a brief crush on Chandler."

**Felix:** "A pea was stuck on my nose in middle school, and I didn't notice it."

**Stella: **"I once keep reading the coffee cups of my parents, to practice divination."

**Lincoln, still stunned on Ronnie Anne's revelation:** "I crossdress as all of my sisters once."

The rest are stunned at Lincoln's admission since it is truly unbelievable from his standpoint. Needless to say with their jaws dropped, they can determine to the winner.

"Well Lincoln, you get the prize," Girl Jordan proclaims. But she whispers to herself, "But at least I know how to keep Lincoln handy."

The gang keeps on with their sharing. However, they spot two people, wobbling uncontrollably, from a distance looking at them. Lincoln recognizes one of them, "Lori?"


	15. Chapter 8, Part 1: Inescapable Intrigue

**Fall does not take rests.**

It is startling for the kids to see Lori spot and recognize them at the middle of the night with three strangers. It is even more startling, especially for Lincoln, to see her shout expletives to them as another guy holds her by the shoulder.

"LINCOLN! KIDS! GO HOME NOW!"

The gang freezes as she walks to them in a decent manner. Her companion, easily one of the guys from Chavez University, collapses to the ground, intoxicated. Lori releases herself from her companions and stands up her own. Her head is rather dizzy, but she stays upright.

She warns them, "You guys shouldn't be here!" But her warnings are slightly slurry.

"Is she…?" Sid asks about her state.

"Those are the sounds of a girl who had too much in her stomach," Ralph tells them.

"I just couldn't believe this," Lincoln groans, not wanting eye contact from Lori as he covers his eyes.

"She'll run off soon," Ralph tells them.

"Should let her?" Stella asks, "Because I don't know if she had too much or she got a diatribe that she just wanted to shout it all out."

Lincoln then insists for them, "Guys, let's duck our heads. Lower them down. That way, she wouldn't mind, and she'll get the message."

At Lincoln's suggestion, the group shyly duck their heads and lean them closer to the mat. Stella, Henry and Girl Jordan even use their elbow to shield their faces away from her sight. They only communicate through whispering.

But that did not stop Lori from calling them out with concern and chastising them.

"Kids, let's go now!"

They do not respond. Lincoln nudges his head to his extreme left and covers his ears.

"Kids, come on!"

They do not respond.

Lori repeats her two aforementioned warnings all over after every two minutes. Her warnings are rather faint from them to her clearly.

But they can still hear her. But they do not respond.

It only reaches to her eleventh warning that she came to a breaking point that she needed to rebuke the children. "Kids, I'm not joking! It's about to be 1AM. You should be home right now. And there's a storm coming. Come on, kids! Especially you Lincoln! I don't know how you guys end up in this party, or end up with those boys. But I warn you, please go back now!"

Luckily, her rebuking only reaches to a couple of teens outside the mansion. Unfortunately, those teens recognize Lori, and some even came from Chavez University. Regardless if they are intoxicated or not, they witness Lori desperately calling out her little brother and his friends. It is rather cringe-worthy for them to watch this. It could be for the reasons that Lori might have brought her young brother and his friends to the party or if she did, they do not want to listen to her. Either reasoning, it is still embarrassing for them to see such a fail.

That news immediately becomes a tidbit of gossip for some teens, including one particular resource for the high school paper. And when such a gossip can become that intriguing, it will spread eventually around their circle.

But Lori did not mind. "Lincoln! Lincoln!"

Back on the group, they shield their faces away from Lori to avoid embarrassment that they use simple hand gestures to play off each other. Henry and Girl Jordan do rocks-paper-scissors face-to-face and in close contact. Miles massages Sid's back as the latter stares at the newt floating in the fish bowl. Stella and Ralph try to search for the Big Dipper constellation on their direction of the sky. And Lincoln and Ronnie Anne are pretty much silent.

After a few minutes, the gang restart their conversation when Girl Jordan resumes their "Never Have I Ever" icebreaker.

Ronnie Anne then reaches out to an adamant Lincoln with a light kick on his shoe. "Hey, feeling alright?"

It takes a minute or so for Lincoln to answer that question. "I guess I know what you feel."

The young Latina realizes that her best friend empathizes with her on a certain occasion. For that, she taps his arm in comfort. In continuous consolation, she rubs his shoulder tenderly. Now, the two find a common ground to take away for the night. It is a hard realization to swallow that your eldest sibling might get on tendencies of debauchery. And it is especially when they demonstrate it uncontrollably right in front of your face. Thus, they cannot blame themselves for the aftermath.

"I don't know if I can forget this night, or if I want to forget this night," Lincoln shares to her. "It just hurts inside. Especially hearing her out loud."

"But hey, the bright side is they were not destructive, yet."

"I hate if they are."

"Well, we just have to make the first move."

Ronnie Anne taps his right shoulder twice in assurance. As a response, Lincoln places his hand over hers to comfort her as well. He does not want to tear up at that moment; he just keeps it to himself, not wanting more melodrama on this easily preventable scenario. Discretely, Ronnie Anne smiles as she feels the warmth of her friend's hands.

Lincoln abruptly asks, "Is she still there?"

With that, Ronnie Anne tilts her head upwards to keep her head lowered and shifts it to her right direction, where Lori is. She moves her head around their vicinity to check if Lori is around; she is not around. She moves her elbows to push her body upwards to get a better vantage point and double check for Lori; she is not around.

"She's gone."

"What do you mean she's gone?" Lincoln asks, with the rest hearing it.

"Lori's out of the picture. She's not around," Ronnie Anne elaborates.

The rest rise up to confirm her observation. Lo and behold, Lori is gone from her spot. But the party is still at function, as seen from the lights and the faint EDM sounds.

"Well, that didn't stop the party," Felix notes.

"And that," Girl Jordan points to the encroaching thunderstorm. The weather pattern starts to become gradually violent and alarming for the gang.

But Felix assures, "Okay if by 1:20 the thunders get scarier and it drizzles longer, let's roll."

"If not?" Sid asks.

"Well, we have to really bring you guys back home."

"Dude, if a raindrop falls, we go now," Henry modifies their setting.

"Okay, point taken." Felix then shares his plan, "Maybe we take the grassy plains on the lakeshore, then escape to that slope going to the parking area and quickly find the truck."

Stella then shares to him, "About your truck, the window is with puke."

Felix groans on that fact. "I really hate Miles. Never mind about that. Hate living with him anyway, and it becomes tiring."

"Why won't you move out?" Ronnie Anne asks.

"I could, but Miles blackmailed me into telling the authorities that I am the parents of undocumented immigrant. I hate that prick."

The girls sympathize with Miles' plight that they collectively pat their hands on his back in comfort.

"We're here, Miles," they tell him.

"Thanks girls," Miles responds. "I can handle this myself. It's Miles. He is just a little puke."

"Never realize there are girls like you," Ralph compliments them. "Usually, there are a few. But far in between, you just came out of nowhere. Your mothers might be so proud of you."

Henry adds to the praises, "Same for me. I hope some girls in class are like you. Like not just fun. Fun can get a long way. But sympathy…dude, I somehow only saw it from you, gals. Just cool."

"You're cool too," Girl Jordan tells Henry. "You're cool to jam with."

"You're cool to jam with," Henry reiterates to Girl Jordan. "And Stella. And if we have a time like this, maybe all of you?"

"Sid knows how to sing," Ronnie Anne jokes.

Sid is comically offended by it. "I do not! Well, in my own universe, I am the best singer. And this is not my own universe."

Felix gets along with the banter, "Well, I have my own universe. And I am not even the best singer there. I wish."

Sid then playfully nudges his upper arm with her fist.

Girl Jordan shares emotionally, "You're so great, guys. Wish this will last long. Hopefully after this, we can find some time to bond."

"Certainly," Stella agrees.

"I would want that," Sid says.

"Cool for me," Ralph approves.

"Hmm depends if Bobby would be willing to drive us, or if we have bus money," Ronnie Anne says.

The only person who has yet to give his thoughts is Lincoln himself. For that, all eyes are turned to him. "Lincoln?" Girl Jordan utters.

Lincoln gives them a crooked smile, trying to hide him retained doubts about the three boys. Regardless, he remarks with a shrug, "Well, if there's food…"

With that, their night has been wrapped up. The clock strikes exactly at 1:30 AM. The gang gets up from their place and stretch their arms. The girls voluntarily fold the mat. Felix holds his fishbowl before he gives it back to Sid for her take care. Henry and Girl Jordan exchange phone numbers. Ralph shows a magic trick to Stella. And Lincoln and Ronnie Anne check on their phones if Lori and Bobby ever did try to call them. Only Lori sent a message to Lincoln at 20:12 with: "_will be home. we are fine._"

Lincoln shows the message to Ronnie Anne. "Does this mean anything?"

Ronnie Anne shakes his head, "That sums up the night."

Right on time, drizzle falls down from the sky as the lightning and thunder intensify. The kids use the mat to shield themselves from the raindrops.

Likewise, the partygoers either rush to the mansion or head to their cars. And with that, the party lights and the house music die down. The gang rush to find Felix's car in the grassy parking lot, not minding the teen around them. But Lincoln catches a glimpse of one group of jocks suspecting them. He hides immediately.

They finally reach Felix's pickup and head inside. Felix switches on the wipers and the sprinklers to wash off the vomit on the windshield.

They drive off the property quickly, taking the lakeshore drive route as a mean to escape quickly. After which, Felix drops off the gang on their homes. First, he drops off Stella. Then, Girl Jordan. And finally, Lincoln, Ronnie Anne and Sid in the Loud house.

After saying their goodbyes, the kids march inside and drop their bodies to the couch.

"I what will happen to them," Sid shares.

Lincoln despondently responds, "Let time tell."


	16. Chapter 8, Part 2: Inescapable Intrigue

**Fall does not hold back.**

It is Saturday morning, the day after the stormy Friday.

After that tiring night, Lincoln, Ronnie Anne and Sid head to the living room and drop their bodies from exhaustion, leading to their sleep. Lincoln drops his body to the recliner, with his legs hanging on the left-side armrest. Ronnie Anne and Sid lie to the couch. They wanted their day's burdens off their backs that they hope an easy sleep would remedy that. And indeed, they sleep heavily until the clock strikes noon on the next day.

On that time, Lincoln is surrounded by his sisters who just arrived from their Friday gigs. As he opens his eyelids, they pop to his eyesight frame as if they are the cast of _Friends_ during the episode "The One With The Birth".

"Linky, Linky, Linky…" Leni calls him out like an infant.

"You seemed to be pretty bushed, dude," Luna says as he tries to regain consciousness.

"To be fair, that is not the most annoying snore that you did in this house," Lynn Jr. tells him.

"Wha…?" Lincoln unintelligibly groans, having his head heavy in exhaustion.

"Why are you sleeping in the couch, Lincoln?" Lana asks. "Shouldn't you be in your bedroom?"

"And why did you bring two girlfriends with you in the house?" Luan jokingly but concernedly asks.

"Girlfriends…?" he sleepily repeats her.

"Yeah, Ronnie Anne and what's her face," Lola clarifies.

Luna then consults Lisa, who is checking his pulse through her stethoscope. "How is he, Lisa?"

The 4-year-old genius confirms, "His body is fully operational, even during limbo. But due to the prolonged doze and his immediate tendency to slumber in the familial reception premises, he must have a previous extraneous bodily activity. Meaning, he must have done something tiring last night."

"Yeah, no kidding," Lynn Jr. reacts. "I used that excuse when I have to work out and gush it all out."

Her sisters raise an eyebrow over what and how Lynn gives her comparison.

"What?"

Right at that moment, Lincoln rises up from the comfy recliner seat he finds comfy. His white hair is messy. His shirt is worn out. His pants are slightly soaked from the rainfall last night. And his eyes are wrinkly from the hours he has been awake.

"What's going on?" Lincoln growls as he wakes up formally.

"We were just about to ask you that," Luna tells him.

"It's been a long night," he utters. Though, after a concern pop in his head, he asks, "Where's Lori?"

"Nowhere here," Lucy answers. "We assume that she might have overstayed in her party."

"She did," he bluntly reveals to them.

The girls gasp in confusion, hearing that fact. "What do you mean?" Lana asks.

"It's a long story, Lana," he answers to her directly. "You don't wanna know the details."

"How come Lori would stay all night long in that seniors party?" Luna wonders. But then she reviews her words and finds out she answered her own question. "Ohhh…"

Quickly deducing her assumptions, Luan asks Leni, "Leni, you were the first one who knows that Lori is invited to that party. What else did she told you?"

Leni tries to recall what Lori revealed to her about that anticipated party. But on what she remembered, she can only gather general expectations from the party, like "it has the cutest seniors", "seniors and college dudes are going to have a good time" and "only seniors are allowed". So, she provides this help information, "Not much, but she told she's going to have fun, starting at 4:20 PM. What does that mean?"

But Luna and Luan shush her immediately from accidentally spilling expletives that their younger sisters must not hear.

"I think we got the idea, Leni," Luna grumbles.

Lana then forwards her concern, "Well, if that's the case, why are Ronnie Anne and someone else here? Was that girl a friend?"

Lola then assumes horrifyingly, "Gasp! Ronnie Anne! Which means Bobby's here. And Lori brought Bobby here. And that way…"

Connecting the pieces together, the Loud sisters gasp in shock in front of a still woozy Lincoln over a bigger concern about Lori.

"Why would Lori and Bobby do such a thing?!" Luan surmises.

Lincoln suddenly grunts loudly, "WHY DON'T YOU ASK THEM THAT?"

The sisters are stunned at Lincoln's sudden outburst. With his demeanor that resurfaced from last night, they find their concerns answered about the secret behind last night. Even with that, they could not grasp on their minds that Lori became neglectful of not only Lincoln but of her boyfriend's sister and their accomplice.

Ronnie Anne is awakened from Lincoln's rant that she shared, "Don't get me started with Bobby."

Likewise, their disbelief is extended to Bobby for his unintentional arrogance.

Sid suddenly wakes up as well, as if an electric current touched her skin. "What is wha…? Huh?" She looks around and gets a first-time glimpse on the Loud sisters. She politely introduces herself, "Oh! You must be the Lincoln's sisters? I'm Sid. I'm best friends with Ronnie Anne. And it's my first time here!"

Yet, the sisters are speechless to Sid's chipper introduction. But Luna and Lana awkwardly wave their hands to her in courtesy.

But at the nick of bad timing, the Vanzilla turns hurriedly to garage, skidding the sidewalk and coming to a screeching halt. Lori, on her worn out dress and messy facial makeup, steps out of the van and marches to the house in a fit of rage.

She opens the door to see all of the occupants stare at her shambolic appearance. Her sisters are appalled. Ronnie Anne and Sid are motionless, but slightly livid at her. And Lincoln, with his fist tight, is glaring at her fiercely.

Lori's vehemence rises to a level she never felt before her siblings. So, she softly requests, "Ronnie Anne, Sid, get to the van now. Or else. And the rest who is not Lincoln, to your rooms. Now."

Her soft-spoken threats seem to be scarier than her angry tirades that everyone complied. Sid picks up their stuff, including the newt that Felix left for her, and Ronnie Anne follows along (with extra heat towards Lori). All of the sisters climb upstairs and head to their rooms.

Now, it is just Lincoln and Lori, face to face, at the walkway to the door, adjacent to the living room. Bearing their own anger towards each other, they glare at each other, at constant patient as to who gets to speak first.

Four minutes later, Lori speaks out, "Remember that I told you to promise me to 'just be safe and take care of them all the time'?"

Lincoln responds with a begrudging tone, "Like that it matters to you…"

Lori twists her head, furious that her own brother became stubborn to her. Not wanting to contain her fuming, she implodes right to his face, "HOOOOWWW COULD YOU?!" before she could grab him by the neck.

Lincoln quickly dodges her and runs to the kitchen. Lori chases him, just as he throws items to her. But that did not stop Lori from impetuous rage. She chases him around the ground floor, from the kitchen to the dining room, from the living room to the staircases. He tries to climb upstairs, but she grabs him by the leg. Fortunately, he kicks her face, angering her more.

"WHAT KIND OF A SISTER WOULD TRICK HER BROTHER SO SHE CAN GET DRUNK ALL NIGHT?!" Lincoln vents before he throws a box of flour to her face.

Her rage is almost a Mr. Hyde monster of its own as she chases him around in ravage.

As Lincoln returns to the living room, he slides via the couch and goes under the table. Just as Lori passes by the hall, she skips the premises and heads towards the dining hall to catch her brother. When the coast is clear, Lincoln quietly crawls out of the table and attempts to run to the front door. But his heated sister catches him on the stop and grabs him by the shoulder to slam him against the wooden wall. She slams him repeatedly to make him learn a lesson.

But Lincoln, in self-defense, flails his hands on her arms, "LET GO OFF ME!"

In retaliation, Lori pushes his arms away from her face. "DON'T DARE TELL ME THAT!"

"YOU MONSTER!" he rants ruefully.

Offended, Lori bangs his body repeatedly and throws all of her anger at the moment to his very soul. "MONSTER? YOU ARE NOTHING BUT A NASTY, LITTLE CREEP!"

But at the end of it, she stops. She realizes that she cannot erase what she thundered at Lincoln. Her arms grow softly, and she slowly lets go off Lincoln. Her guilt seeps in, replacing her rage. And with that hurtful reminder, she breaks down in tears.

Lincoln still inhabits his resentment towards his sister. But as he watches her in tears, his own anger wears down as well.

They sit in silence, reeling from the impact of last night. Lincoln holds back his tears, but Lori lets her sorrows fall. Both have their plights, but their offense hinders them from understanding each other.

"Sorry Lincoln…I'm sorry…Sorry…"

Lincoln does not respond. But that did not stop Lori from admitting her guilt. "Sorry Lincoln…I'm really sorry…"

Lincoln sooner admits, "You know it hurts to see my sister…drunk…"

Lori clears it up, "I was not drunk! I never was! I was tired! I had to accompany Bobby and Carol. The two were tricked into drinking. I lost Bobby in the party. But I found out that you and the girl snuck in. I tried looking for you. Then I found you." At that point, she returns to her primary concern. "Why didn't you guys complied?"

Lincoln rationalizes defensively, "You were acting dru…"

"I WAS NOT DRUNK!" she reiterates before she continues to let her tears flow. Lincoln gives her leeway to pour out her tears.

He sits motionless, also feeling the guilt of being arrogant to his sister over not obeying her. He lets the moment gloss over as they reflect on their mistakes. Eventually, Lori gets up and fixes herself, so that she can fetch Bobby, Ronnie Anne and Sid back to the bus terminal. She wipes her face from the tears and gives Lincoln a hand to get up. Lincoln complies, and they fix themselves up. The two are not sure if they are in a steady understanding towards each other. But they know that the concern has not yet slipped from their shoulders.

Lori exits the door and takes the three to the terminal. Lincoln looks upon his window to see Ronnie Anne leaning by the window at the center leftmost seat. She waves bye to him. He waves back.


	17. Chapter 9, Part 1: Solemn Suffering

**Warning for extreme mature discussions and content. (It will be the last.) Just a disclaimer, it was a year ago that the "scandal" happened at work. It was nothing more than gossip and a disciplinary issue. But all is well.**

* * *

**Fall is tipping the scales.**

Another Saturday came. Then another Sunday came. But there will be Monday.

After their Friday night bond, Girl Jordan formed a chat group exclusively for them. She invited Lincoln, Stella, Ronnie Anne and Sid to the group. She tried to search for the accounts of Felix, Henry and Ralph likewise. She could only locate the one from Henry, who eventually added the two.

Lincoln is nervous about how will others perceive of their bond. Regardless, he is willing to keep along with the game, as long as his girl friends are happy.

Ever since Sunday, the chat group was incredibly noisy, with Girl Jordan and Henry getting through a friendly banter, Stella and Ralph exchanging thoughtful expressions, and Sid and Felix sharing colorful GIFs to the group. Lincoln and Ronnie Anne are commonly the most non-vocal in the group, through the latter would have funny exchanges with Sid. The chat group was mostly noisy throughout the weekend that Felix pleaded that the eight of them reunite and resume their stargazing session. Likewise, the girls would heavily agree on that. And Sid even suggested to call themselves "Stargazers". With the help of Girl Jordan, they willingly agree.

That Sunday night, Sid invites them for a video call to continue where they drop off and discuss how to handle their newfound friendship for the week.

Sid and Ronnie Anne start the meeting. Girl Jordan and Henry accept the invite. Felix follows up. Stella enters next. Ralph comes next. And finally, Lincoln turns up to the group, who are in the middle of another "Never Have I Ever" session.

"Hey guys, what did I miss?" Lincoln asks.

"_Hey Lincoln!_" Stella greets him.

"Hey bro!" Henry does so as well.

"_Felix has his turn now for 'Never Have I Ever'_," Girl Jordan shares.

"_What did he share?_" he asks.

"_I was about to say that never have I ever cheated in my math exams_," Felix tells him.

"_We were just trying to top every 'never have I ever' confessions we have_," Sid explains.

"It's still Sid who has the most unbeatable 'never have I ever'," Girl Jordan shares.

"What was it?"

"_She told us that she never cried ever in kindergarden_," Ralph reveals, then sarcastically remarks, "_Like that's even possible._"

"I never did," Sid says, "And it's weird that I still remember never having cried in the classroom."

"_Really?! Like if you stubbed your toe? Or if a kid stole your lunch? Or your first day of school?_" Henry argues.

"_For real. And if someone stole my lunch, I just say a bird will eat them_," Sid shares.

"_And they buy your story?_" Felix asks.

"_Yeah._"

Felix is kind of amazed at her. "_Wow. Wish I could bluff like you._"

Ronnie Anne then turns her discussion to another topic so Lincoln can butt in. "So Lincoln, Sid and I were talking if us eight can meet together again. I mean now, we are back at Great Lakes. And we wonder if that will be possible."

"We still have this chat," Lincoln stresses.

"_Yeah, but wouldn't it be fun if we meet face-to-face?_" Sid brings that concern to him. "_So, what I propose is that we meet this coming Saturday. We can go on a road trip. Felix can bring his truck. And you guys drop by here in the apartment._"

Lincoln is kind of overwhelmed and speechless that his friends would come up to that conclusion. He agrees to keep their friendship with the three teenage boys, but not to the extent that the eight of them will go to that exploit. "_Road trip? This Saturday?_"

"_Yeah,_" Girl Jordan answers, "_Sid was really excited about the idea. Ronnie Anne and Stella were onboard as well. So, the four of us convinced boys. Henry was the first one to say 'yes'._"

"_And I promised to finance the gas and the car insurance_," Henry adds.

Felix retorts, "_Well, we have no other choice. So you take it all._"

Girl Jordan then inquires to Lincoln, "_So, all of us agree this Saturday. Are you in Lincoln? Or do you have plans?_"

Lincoln is still speechless about their discussion. This is in the midst of his still continuing disagreement with Lori. But his mind wonders about Ronnie Anne and Bobby. He asks himself, "_What happened to the brother and sister?_" And it seems uncharacteristic for Ronnie Anne not to show a hint of disagreement between her and Bobby. So, his doubts are truly justified.

Regardless, he shrugs and tells them, "I mean I like road trips. Maybe…"

But Girl Jordan and Sid take his 'maybe' easily as a 'yes'. "_Maybe is a YES!_"

The rest of them cheer, while Lincoln gives a hesitant smile to mask off his doubts.

"_Okay, let's settle on Saturday!_" Ronnie Anne suggests. "_You guys on Royal Woods handle the mode of transportation. Sid and I will handle the itinerary._"

"That's great to hear, Ronnie Anne!" Felix exclaims. "Alright guys, 7am sharp, we set off to Great Lakes and we'll be there in your apartment by 10am."

"Good call!" Sid praises him.

After their discussion of their road trip, they resume their "Never Have I Ever" sharing session. Everyone else is having his or her enjoyment from the sharing. However, Lincoln has his mix of enjoyment and guilt.

Subsequently, once the rest of the gang leaves the video call, Lincoln remains with Ronnie Anne as the host. Ronnie Anne wonders, "_Hey Link, you haven't left the call yet._"

"I know," Lincoln utters in a somber tone.

Curious, Ronnie Anne asks him, "_Is there anything wrong? Your voice seems to suggest that something's wrong with you?_"

Secured that it is just the two of them in the video channel, he finally shares his sentiments, "Ronnie Anne, don't you think our…bond…with the guys has gone…over the rails?"

"_What are you talking about?_"

"I mean we just met Felix, Henry and Ralph last Friday night. And somehow, we wanted to become close friends with them."

"_Yeah, there's nothing wrong with being friends with them._"

"It's just that we kind of got overboard. And besides, you still have your issue with Bobby."

At the mention of his name, Ronnie Anne feels her heart burning once more. She receives again her unwanted resentment towards her brother. "_Can we not mention him for now?_"

"What happened? Ronnie Anne, Bobby is a good friend to me, and a good boyfriend to Lori. Any problem with him, we also get concerned."

Ronnie Anne keeps her composure to himself. Though, her face bears a bitterness towards the figure himself. She would rather keep her problems with him for herself, since she does not want to let others be a burden. So, she suggests to Lincoln, "_Confess me your problems, and I confess mine._"

"Okay," Lincoln agrees. "I have a problem with the boys bringing five kids in a defiant road trip."

Ronnie Anne then reveals hers, "_I told to mom that Bobby was drinking. And he was forced in the bodega for the entire month. Now, he is doing the silent treatment on me._" Lincoln is shocked to see that from Bobby of all people. "_Why couldn't I blame him?!_"

Her best friend falls silent after confession. He simply gapes his lips in shock, not knowing how to react to their situation.

Ronnie Anne likewise is reeling from the fallout she has with her brother. She breathes back and forth, trying to ease herself and not act vulnerable in front of him. After a while, she soon understands Lincoln's plight and connects it to her situation. "_But I understand you, Lincoln. Look, if you have problems with them personally, you can share that to them. And if the trip sounds too demanding, well I can always adjust it to another time._"

But Lincoln sets his grudges aside for the sake of their happiness. "No, it's fine. We can go. Just not used to this kind of thing."

"_Are you sure?_"

"Yeah, don't worry about me."

"_Well, you can always tell me anytime._"

"Yes. Well, it's nice you can hang on."

"_What are friends for?_"

With that, the two friends simultaneously drop their call and ready for bed. Ronnie Anne sets aside her laptop to the desk and lays to her bed while she stares at the ceiling. Lincoln uncomfortably lays to his bed and goes to a dream.

_That Saturday morning, Lincoln gets up from his bed and readies his jacket for the trip. He does not carry anything along the way, except for his phone and his wallet. None from his family has seen him sneak out from his bedroom._

_He stays on the sidewalk, waiting for the gang to come. It is a peaceful Saturday morning for doing the household errands. But in the speed of a pickup truck, the tone has changed._

"_Hey Link! Come aboard!" the trio of the red-shirted Felix, the green-shirted Henry and the blue-shirted Ralph invite him._

"_Why not?" Lincoln quips and boards their truck._

_With him on the wheel, Felix turns on the car radio. "Hey Link, if you don't mind, let's have Whitesnake on the radio."_

"_Sure, whatever they are," he replies._

"_They have the coolest song of all time!" Henry boasts._

"_And it's real sick!" Ralph adds._

_The gang then set off to fetch the rest of the girls. They drop by at Stella's place, where she steps out wearing a scarf. They go next to Girl Jordan's residence, where she runs towards the gang in her usual yellow shirt. And with the Royal Woods gang settled, they drive off to Great Lakes City. It is awesome how the girls are at the back of the truck. Mix it with the thrill of the song, and it is a great feeling._

_Once they get to Great Lakes City, they stop by at the Casagrandes' apartment, where Ronnie Anne in a yellow jacket and Sid on a yellow beanie waited by the sidewalk. They excitedly board the truck with Ronnie Anne pecking at Lincoln's cheek and Sid hopping at the front seat. Ralph, Henry, Girl Jordan and Stella decide to hop on the back to spend the rest of the trip._

_And with the rocking chorus of "Here I Go Again", they make their way to the turnpike en route to a place of nowhere._

_And here I go again on my own_

_Goin' down the only road I've ever known_

_Like a drifter, I was born to walk alone_

_And I've made up my mind_

_I ain't wasting no more time_

_But here I go again_

_As night falls, Felix has them stop by at a parking space where they are the only ones there. Instead of stopping by at an appropriate service station, they catch the most secure location where they have the dimmest night for stargazing._

_The girls are amazed at the sky, in spite of the busy highway._

"_Truly peaceful here," Ronnie Anne utters._

"_We can set up a mat here and look at the stars!" Sid suggests._

"_Perfect! We got food!" Girl Jordan exclaims._

"_And music!" Stella says, showing Henry's guitar._

"_Let me take the lead," Henry says, taking the instrument and playing "You Have a Friend" by Carole King. He takes the lead, and others, including Lincoln, jams with him sweetly as they prepare their stargazing._

_Winter, spring, summer or fall_

_All you have to do is call_

_And I'll be there_

_You've got a friend_

_Suddenly, two black SUVs turn up. The de facto leader calls them out, "What are you kids doing here at night?!"_

"_We're just in a road trip, sir," Felix tells them._

_The goons get down from their cars, all Caucasians in their 40's. "Seems you have more than just a road trip."_

_Three of them take Felix, Henry and Ralph and pin them brutally to the ground. They try to resist, but they beat their faces to the asphalt._

_Ronnie Anne, Sid, Stella and Girl Jordan are at disbelief as to what the goons are doing their friends. "Don't hurt them! They didn't do anything wrong!" the girls protest._

_Lincoln also comes to their defense, "They're with us sir. Promise!"_

"_Oh, so you're an accomplice then?" the de facto goon assumes. He then pushes Lincoln to the ground and lines him up with the boys._

_Four more goons bring the girls to one car._

"_We have runaways here," the de facto goon signals to the rest in his radio. He then confronts to the girls, "Now, we'll leave you alone if you promise to tell them they are criminals. Or we'll shoot the white-haired dude and call the cops."_

_They nod "No" as they break in tears from the traumatic happening. But wanting to save Lincoln, each of them answers to the phone, claiming that Felix, Henry and Ralph are criminals. It turns out that the other person in the line are the cops._

"_Be silent or you're all dead!" Several goons then line up to the car._

_They could not be silent anymore. All Lincoln can hear are the painful screams of the boys and the unbearable cries of the girls._

Lincoln wakes up, screaming loudly.


	18. Chapter 9, Part 2: Solemn Suffering

**Fall is showing its demons.**

That Sunday early morning, Lincoln screams loud like he never did before. His cries quake the walls and reaches to every corner of the Loud house. His sisters reach to him right away by the door.

"Lincoln, are you alright?!"

"He's hyperventilating," Lynn warns. "Quick! Let's cool him up!"

They immediately tend to their shaking brother. Lynn Jr. and Lana fetch a towel to wipe their brother's profuse sweat. Lola and Leni wrap his body with thicker blankets to calm his nerves. Luan and Lily provide a glass of cold water for him. Lisa checks his pulse. And Luna and Lucy calm him down through breathing exercises. The sisters try their best to slow Lincoln's heartbeat.

Mr. and Mrs. Loud race to the top to check the commotion.

"What's happening kids?" Lynn Loud asks worriedly.

"Is Lincoln okay?" Rita adds anxiously.

"Lincoln just woke up from a nightmare," Luna tells them.

"170-180 bpm," Lisa examines. "We need to slow down his pulse."

Learning that, Rita tends to her son's care, caressing his arms and holding his head near to her. Lynn Sr. quickly obtain a towelette and a washcloth to cool Lincoln's skin. With all gathered in Lincoln's confined room, the family try their best to soothe Lincoln's condition.

"Are you okay, sweetie?" Rita asks.

Lincoln keeps huffing, trying to slow down his bloodstream pace. The calmness is right in the corner, but the trauma of his nightmare has yet to subside. Luan gives a glass of water to Lincoln, with Lily handing over the utensil to him. Lincoln takes a gulp of the water and pants loudly to calm down. "I'm good, I'm good, I'm good," he replies. "Just a nightmare." He then sniffles harder.

Rita taps his chest to help clear his lungs. "It's okay, sweetie. You're awake now. It's gone. It's gone."

His sisters then surround him to alleviate the trauma.

"I have worse episodes," Lucy says. "But I understand you Lincoln." She then wraps her right arm to Lincoln's left side. They keep with their effort to calm him down until Lincoln gives the signal that he is fine.

However, watching them is Lori who just stood by the doorway.

Noticing her, Rita orders her, "Lori, there you are. Can you get the thermometer? It's on the tabletop beside Lily's crib."

But Lori gives a disappointed expression to Lincoln, which does not help his situation. Yet, she is compliant to her mother's commands, walking out of the doorway with begrudging. The rest of the family does not notice her behavior. However, it is striking to Lincoln since this directed towards him. But Lori's hidden resentment towards Lincoln is just the tip of the iceberg of their problems.

For now, Lincoln is grateful that his family race to him at his time of need.

* * *

The next morning, an average November Monday morning, Lincoln waits for the yellow school bus to arrive. He did not check his phone. But as he boards the bus, everyone begins to stare at him. It is the start of a blistery beginning.

In Royal Woods Elementary, Stella places her backpack in her locker. She is about to ready her stuff for first period. When she closes the locker, her loyal friends Rusty, Liam and Zack appear from her right side, with aghast expressions on their faces.

"Oh hey guys! What's up?" she greets them but is perplexed on their reactions, "What's with the bewildered look?"

The three only show disgust at her before they walk out.

Rusty then has this to say to Stella. "We couldn't believe you, Stella. I thought you are a good-hearted friend."

"What are you talking about?" she asks.

"Some friend! FLIRT!" Acting harshly, Rusty walks out. Onlookers are stunned to see the redheaded kid act this way.

Bewildered, Stella begins to worry as to why her friends ditch her like that. She carries that anxiety to her classroom as she lowers her head to avoid other confrontations.

Likewise, as Girl Jordan walks to their classroom, her eyes are glued on her phone, avoiding being notice by other students, who also acted harshly on her, and wanting to know where all of the commotion is coming from.

She soon notices Mollie and the rest of her gang. "Girls! There you are! I don't know why the other kids are harsh on me. Is this an elaborate prank or something?"

"Oh really?" Mollie replies harshly as well. "Says the flirt I didn't know was my friend!"

"Flirt?" Girl Jordan defends. "Why are you even calling me a flirt? I am anything but a flirt."

"You didn't know?" she responds, leaving Girl Jordan clueless at their sight. She then hints, "The headline on Royal Woods High Daily."

While that information does not give her clarity of the entire reasoning of other students acting harsh around her, Girl Jordan may have a hint on what is the underlying issue.

* * *

On the other hand, Ronnie Anne and Sid are walking their way to school from the bodega. They come across Nikki, Casey and Sameer who are sitting by the sidewalk with their skateboards, looking on their phones with disbelief.

"Guys, why are you still hanging around here in the morning?" Ronnie Anne asks.

"Is it true, Ronnie Anne?" Sameer confronts her with skepticism.

"What is what true?" she asks.

The three of them then show their phones to them. They are reading a clickbait article with the title **"Three Juvenile Seniors Hook Up with Four Young Girls"**. Even though the title could be alluding to another story, Ronnie Ann and Sid scroll down the article, showing their names are indicated. That goes the same with the names of Lincoln, Stella, Girl Jordan and most especially, their three new friends Felix, Henry and Ralph. Not only that, it accuses the three of grooming the kids, and the girls "flirtatiously taking the bait".

Both girls are truly stunned and shaken that innocent their Friday night encounter became tabloid news. "How did you get this?!" Ronnie Anne asks them.

"It went viral in the Internet this morning," Casey tells her.

Sid is just dumbfounded as to how to react to this case. She has no words to say but a face in denial of their reality.

Thus, Ronnie Anne speaks for her, "Everybody on school is going to hear about this". She convinces Nikki, Casey and Sameer, "Okay guys, need your help on shielding me and Sid away from the crowd. And I promise to explain everything on the way."

Despite their doubts, the three agree to accompany the girls to school. "We're with you, Ronnie Anne," Nikki assures.

With that comes a whole day of contemplating over the news.

* * *

Back in Royal Woods High, Lori hastily drives the Vanzilla for her dad to school, dropping Leni, Luna and Luan to the vicinity.

"Lori, you don't have to drive that fast," Lynn Sr. reproaches her.

After she turns the key and hands it to her dad, Lori only shows a little begrudging as she slams the front door of the van.

Concerned, Lynn Sr. gets down from the van and confronts, "Lori, you have been acting this way all morning." She rebuffs me. "Can you at least tell me what is wrong?" But she completely walks out from him.

He asks his daughters, "What's wrong with her?"

"Something tells me that Saturday morning rain is falling hard on her still," Luna reacts.

"You mean she's acting this way for long now, even yesterday?" he asks, making them nod their heads subtly.

"I'll see what I can do," Leni tells them before she catches up to a heated Lori.

Once inside the halls, Lori is marching her way to her classroom. That is when she notices a Hispanic teen with a shaved beard, a hipster beanie and a little weight on him crossing her path. It is Felix.

Having eye contact on her, Felix flees back to the hall where he came from in a hurried pace.

However, with her demeanor, Lori catches up to him and throws her to the nearby deposit room for sporting equipment. She shoves him to the wall and vents at him, "You filthy little jerk! How dare you and your two goons mess me and my brother's life?"

Felix slows her down, "Wait, me? My friends? A goon? We're not the ones ambushing the party."

"Why did you bring those kids in the party in the first place?!"

"Okay first of all, it was not my intention. I didn't know my crackpot of a stepbrother is throwing a frat-boy party at the mansion. Second, you showed your faces there. And they were expecting you and Bobby take responsibility!"

"So, it's my fault? My fault for leaving my brother and his friends on your daycare service?!"

"Nothing happened to us. Period. We are just playing boardgames and bonding. And we thought we could use a little more fun while waiting for you."

"Oh, by that definition, you have to be blamed."

"Nothing happened."

"Well, you can try pushing that defense for this story." Lori then shows her phone, displaying the article about **"Three Juvenile Seniors Hook Up with Four Young Girls"**.

Even though he never reads the less credible school paper, Felix is speechless about the headline that accuses the three minorities for grooming four underage girls, with the help of their enablers – Lincoln and Lori.

"My name is on that article. My brother's name is on that article. I don't want our names to be attached to a scandal. Now, tell me: why did you took them to the mansion?"

Felix is rather moved by the accusation. But he finds it offensive that Lori believed on the article's credibility, basing from her question. "You have no idea, do you? You have no idea how much your brother and his friends nearly lost faith in you? You thought this entire is case is 'me, my friends scoring points on four grade school girls'? Yes, students into gossip may misunderstood our actions. Fine. But aren't you beneath all that? You're the leader in the sports club. Shouldn't you be above this speculation?"

Annoyed, she grabs him by the collar again. But Felix remains unfazed. "Look, you punk, if you are trying to shame me, it won't be as hard as the embarrassment I faced with my friends this morning!"

Felix makes a valid counter-argument, "Okay, so this discussion is about you? Just you? Not about Lincoln? Not about Ronnie Anne? Nor Sid? Nor Stella or Girl Jordan? It's not about their names in a 'scandal' and them being labelled as flirts when they are not. And trust me, they're not."

Just by that fact, Lori lets go off Felix and realizes a bigger battle at their front.


End file.
